The Marshall surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 183,922 people carried this name — #139 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 1,600 people counted. That is up 4% from 177,213 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Marshall surname
An English and Scottish status surname from Middle English for someone who was in charge of the horses of a royal household, or an occupational surname for someone who looked after horses, or was responsible for the custody of prisoners.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Marshall» (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 59 births for the Marshall 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 2,600 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. One of them was indexed under another spelling of the name. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Antrim, Londonderry, Down, and Dublin.”
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 284 people named Marshall 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 140 people named Marshall.
Most of them — 93 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 20 départements, most often Paris.
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
123 people named Marshall live in Switzerland.
They live in 13 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 Poland’s population register
51 people named Marshall have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 170 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 11 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Lesser Poland.
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
234 people named Marshall 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
Marshall in American newspapers,
1900–1916.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 2,552,636 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Marshall,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Christopher Marshall 1709–1797 · bookseller -
John Marshall 1748–1819 · explorer -
John Marshall 1755–1835 · judge -
John Marshall 1797–1836 · politician -
James W. Marshall 1810–1885 · carpenter
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 161 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Marshall.
- Marsac 199 · U.S. census
- Marsala 1,576 · U.S. census
- Marsan 497 · U.S. census
- Marschall 1,075 · U.S. census
- Marseille 650 · U.S. census
- Marsella 929 · U.S. census
- Marsili 381 · U.S. census
- Marson 1,616 · U.S. census
- Marszalek 958 · U.S. census
- Marta 1,203 · U.S. census
- Marte 8,867 · U.S. census
- Martel 9,056 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Marshall 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.