The Oswald surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 14,322 people carried this name — #2,530 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 20,600 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (14,332).
In Switzerland’s population statistics
2,195 people named Oswald live in Switzerland.
They live in all 26 of Switzerland’s cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere 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 933 people named Oswald.
52 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 50 départements, most often Moselle.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 254 people named Oswald 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 Misiones.
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 Ireland’s birth registers, 1890
Ireland registered 5 births for the Oswald name in 1890.
Most were registered in Ulster. 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
Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.
In Poland’s population register
169 people named Oswald have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 229 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 13 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Silesian.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere 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 Belgium’s population register
At least 24 people named Oswald live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Luxembourg Province.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
37 people named Oswald is counted in Sweden.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.
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).
In print
Oswald in American newspapers,
1913–1928.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 122,728 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Oswald,
with a public archive behind them.
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Therese Oswald d. 1889 · actor
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James Oswald d. 1716 · politician
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Archibald Oswald d. 1631 · Christian minister
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John Oswald d. 1653 · Christian minister
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Paul Oswald d. 1782 · sculptor
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Marguerite Oswald d. 1976 · philologist
Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Oswald.
- Osswald 386 · U.S. census
- Oster 6,259 · U.S. census
- Ostermann 956 · U.S. census
- Ostertag 969 · U.S. census
- Ostin 164 · U.S. census
- Ostrowski 7,005 · U.S. census
- Otero 20,937 · U.S. census
- Othon 452 · U.S. census
- Ott 25,738 · U.S. census
- Otta 153 · U.S. census
- Ottaviani 382 · U.S. census
- Ottaviano 1,023 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Oswald 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.