The Johnston surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 131,373 people carried this name — #225 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 2,250 people counted. That is up 2% from 128,935 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Johnston surname
A Scottish habitational surname. from a place in Dumfriesshire, meaning "John's town".
From John + -s- + -ton.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Johnston» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890
Ireland registered 341 births for the Johnston name in 1890.
They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 15,100 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. The count includes the spelling Johnstone.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born, 1890
Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 285 people named Johnston 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 France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 116 people named Johnston.
45 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 16 départements, most often French Polynesia.
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 Switzerland’s population statistics
94 people named Johnston live in Switzerland.
They live in 9 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Geneva.
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 Poland’s population register
28 people named Johnston have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 114 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 7 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Łódź.
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
160 people named Johnston 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
Johnston in American newspapers,
1862–1959.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,209,332 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Johnston,
with a public archive behind them.
-
James Johnston 1721–1797 · military officer -
James Johnston 1724–1800 · merchant -
Francis Johnston 1760–1829 · architect -
Charles Johnston 1768–1833 · writer -
Bill Johnston 1782–1870 · privateer
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 225 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Johnston.
- Johan 151 · U.S. census
- Johann 962 · U.S. census
- Johannes 3,455 · U.S. census
- John 33,543 · U.S. census
- Johner 241 · U.S. census
- Johnson 1,932,812 · U.S. census
- Joint 332 · U.S. census
- Jolet 174 · U.S. census
- Joliat 125 · U.S. census
- Jolibois 171 · U.S. census
- Jolicoeur 1,359 · U.S. census
- Jolie 352 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Johnston 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.