The Ford surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 184,832 people carried this name — #137 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 1,600 people counted. That is up 4% from 178,397 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Ford surname
A topographic surname from Middle English for someone who lived near a ford.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Ford» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 522 people named Ford live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
82 people named Ford live in Switzerland.
They live in 8 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 80 people named Ford.
Most of them — 53 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 13 départements, most often Pas-de-Calais.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Poland’s population register
34 people named Ford have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 128 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 6 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Masovian.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In the Nordic population registers
108 people named Ford are counted in Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
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) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Ford in American newspapers,
1874–1902.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain.
Who carried it
People named Ford,
with a public archive behind them.
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Thomas Ford d. 1582 · politician
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Edmund Ford d. 1501 · politician
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Samuel Ford d. 1900 · politician
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Andrea Ford d. 1999 · journalist
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Edwin Ford d. 1949 · dancer
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Joe Ford d. 2000 · politician
Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Ford.
- Fonvielle 113 · U.S. census
- Foos 2,209 · U.S. census
- Forand 612 · U.S. census
- Foray 157 · U.S. census
- Forcade 135 · U.S. census
- Force 4,108 · U.S. census
- Fore 5,927 · U.S. census
- Fores 198 · U.S. census
- Forest 5,076 · U.S. census
- Forestier 431 · U.S. census
- Forestieri 186 · U.S. census
- Foret 2,881 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Ford 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.