The Darling surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 18,879 people carried this name — #1,904 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 15,600 people counted. That is up 6% from 17,855 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Darling surname

An English and Scottish surname transferred from the nickname, originally a nickname from darling.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Darling» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a nickname: ‘the darling’.

An early record he cites: Ricardus Derlyng, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 231 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 5 births for the Darling name in 1890.

Most were registered in Leinster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 200 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born, 1890

Leinster 3
Connacht 1
Ulster 1

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

In the Nordic population registers

26 people named Darling is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 26

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Darling was found among the farmers of Durham: 16 in every 10,000.

Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Durham 16

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In Scotland’s registers today

Darling was recorded 30 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 816th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 42. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

143 families named Darling, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 796 people lived in those households, 5.6 to a family on average. The table counts it together with one other spelling. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

Massachusetts 57
New York 23
New Hampshire 19
Vermont 15
Rhode Island 9
Connecticut 8
Maine 5
Pennsylvania 2
Maryland 2
Virginia 2
South Carolina 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 236 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Darling in American newspapers,
1869–1911.

Newspaper page from Daily Kennebec Journal carrying the name Darling
Daily Kennebec Journal 1911-12-16
Newspaper page from The New Orleans Crescent carrying the name Darling
The New Orleans Crescent 1869-03-12
Newspaper page from Water Valley Progress carrying the name Darling
Water Valley Progress 1902-08-09

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 8,966 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Darling in Australian newspapers,
1810s–2000s.

82,030 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Darling. The most, 16,198, date from the 1900s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in South Australia, at 2.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

South Australia 27,768
New South Wales 17,718
Victoria 15,333
Queensland 7,181
Tasmania 7,147
Western Australia 6,160
ACT (Canberra) 507
Northern Territory 46

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Darling.

Who carried it

People named Darling,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Sam Darling
    Sam Darling d. 1921 · horse trainer
  • Ralph Darling
    Ralph Darling 1772–1858 · politician
  • Robert Darling d. 1770 · politician
  • Aaron E. Darling d. 1882 · artist
  • Nancy Darling d. 1998
  • Isabella Mary Sturrock d. 1828

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Darling,
in the records of 9 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States2,103 records

2,103 records of the Darling name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 579
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 507
  • Other U.S. records 1,017
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Edmund R. Darling

    Born 1923 in Ohio. Enlisted 1943 at Akron; warehouseman from Coshecton County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1986, buried at Valley View Cemetery, Warsaw, Ohio.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Larry Wayne Darling

    Born 1946; from New Castle, Indiana. U.S. Army, armor reconnaissance specialist; killed in action 1968 in Gia Dinh, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Thomas Darling

    Arrived at New York in 1885 aboard the Furnessia from Glasgow, aged 42; merchant. From Dundee, Scotland; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 2,103 records for Darling in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia894 records

894 records of the Darling name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 511
  • Tasmanian Names Index 166
  • Other Australian records 217
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Joshua Darling

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Henry Porcher, sailing from London in 1836. Native of Windsor, Berkshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1845. Married 1845 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 28.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record James Ebenezer Darling

    Born 1848 in Tasman, Tasmania. Died 1867 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 18.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Elzth Darling

    Arrived in Victoria in 1855 aboard the Medway, aged 69.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 894 records for Darling in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · City of Ballarat, Avenue of Honour Plaques (CC BY 3.0 AU) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Canada125 records

125 records of the Darling name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 42
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 34
  • Other Canadian records 49
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Charles Darling

    Came to Ontario in 1870 aboard the Scandinavian, landing at Quebec, bound for Sarnia, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Myrtle Darling

    Buried in 1973 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 83.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Stella Stuart Darling

    Died 1973 in Salmon River, Colchester, Nova Scotia, aged 88.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 125 records for Darling in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom42 records

42 records of the Darling name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 20
  • Stirling Council burial records 10
  • Other British records 12
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record William Darling

    Buried in 1949 at Snowdon Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 74.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Frederick William Darling

    Will proved in 1929; of Old Colwyn, Denbigh.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record F. W. D. Darling

    Gunner, Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 42 records for Darling in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

New Zealand25 records

25 records of the Darling name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 18
  • Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 6
  • Timaru and Mackenzie District cemetery records 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Mervyn Ransom Darling

    Buried in 1982 at Buffalo Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 69.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Ellen Darling

    Died 1933, aged 75; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Mabel Darling

    Died 1952, aged 56; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 25 records for Darling in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0) · Canterbury Maps (Environment Canterbury), Timaru and Mackenzie District Councils (CC BY 3.0 NZ). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Netherlands5 records

5 records of the Darling name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 4
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Emma Darling

    Died 1859 in 's-Gravenhage, aged 20.

    Open Archives, Haags Gemeentearchief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Annie Darling

    In a population register; born 1844 in Beollington.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 5 records for Darling in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

France3 records

3 records of the Darling name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Margaret Cynthia Darling

    Born 1933 in Great Britain; died 1997 in Moûtiers (Savoie).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Andre Georges William Darling

    Born 1925 in Saint-Pey-d'Armens (Gironde); died 1987 in Versailles (Yvelines).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 3 records for Darling in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Ireland2 records

2 records of the Darling name in Ireland County Galway graveyard records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Frederick Darling

    Died 1895, aged 50; buried at White Chapel, Co. Galway.

    Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 1 of 2 records for Darling in Ireland.

Counts: Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Germany1 record

1 record of the Darling name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Josef Darling

    From Maschau, Danzig. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 29 May 1916 (Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 84).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Darling.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Darling is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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