The Platt surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 18,022 people carried this name — #2,006 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 16,400 people counted. That is down 2% from 18,376 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Platt surname

English habitational surname from Platt Bridge, from Old French plat (“footbridge”).

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Platt» (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 local name, from where the family lived: ‘of the plat’.

An early record he cites: Robertus del Platte, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

His entry covers Platt and Platts.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 610 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 8 births for the Platt name in 1890.

Most were registered in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 400 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Londonderry.”

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

Where they were born, 1890

Ulster 7
Leinster 1

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

In Switzerland’s population statistics

55 people named Platt live in Switzerland.

They live in 6 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

Zurich 19
Schaffhausen 13
Lucerne 11
St. Gallen 5
Basel-Stadt 4
Basel-Landschaft 3

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 36 people named Platt.

Most of them — 21 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 9 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

Born outside France 21
Paris 4
Yvelines 3
Bas-Rhin 2
Hauts-de-Seine 1
Essonne 1
Seine-et-Marne 1
Haut-Rhin 1
Haute-Garonne 1

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In Poland’s population register

27 people named Platt have a registered home in Poland.

Of the 56 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 Lower Silesian.

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

Where they live today

Lower Silesian 10
Pomeranian 4
Silesian 4
Greater Poland 3
Kuyavian-Pomeranian 2
Lesser Poland 2
Podlaskie 2

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

24 people named Platt is counted in Sweden.

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

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 24

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

Platt was found among the farmers of 4 counties.

It was most frequent in Cheshire: 42 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 238. 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

Cheshire 42
Lancashire 8
Berkshire 7
Derbyshire 7

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

Platt was recorded 13 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 1564th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 18. 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

144 families named Platt, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 870 people lived in those households, 6 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 2 other spellings. 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

Connecticut 59
New York 50
Massachusetts 9
Pennsylvania 8
South Carolina 8
New Hampshire 7
Vermont 2
North 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. 257 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Platt in American newspapers,
1896–1913.

Newspaper page from The Tacoma Times carrying the name Platt
The Tacoma Times 1913-09-13
Newspaper page from The Salt Lake Herald carrying the name Platt
The Salt Lake Herald 1896-04-12
Newspaper page from Wood County Reporter carrying the name Platt
Wood County Reporter 1896-04-09

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain.

In print

Platt in Australian newspapers,
1810s–1990s.

14,176 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Platt. The most, 2,651, date from the 1930s.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 5,691
Victoria 2,735
Queensland 2,388
South Australia 1,812
Western Australia 917
Tasmania 471
ACT (Canberra) 90
Northern Territory 13

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

Who carried it

People named Platt,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John Talbot Platt d. 1990 · university teacher
  • Henry Platt d. 1899 · politician
  • Margaret Florence Platt d. 1934
  • Helen Synge d. 1925
  • Noel Platt d. 1908
  • Emma Jane Holman d. 1911

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Platt,
in the records of 8 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 States3,436 records

3,436 records of the Platt name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 1,203
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 749
  • Other U.S. records 1,484
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Billy Wayne Platt

    Born 1941; from La Porte, Texas. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1967 in Phuoc Tuy, South Vietnam. Buried at Houston National Cemetery, Texas.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Claude Platt

    Born 1910 in Alabama. Enlisted 1942 at Fort McClellan; lineman from Mobile County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2000, buried at Pine Crest Cemetery, Citronelle, Alabama.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Eliza Platt

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Etruria from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 55; matron. From Liverpool, England; bound for Chicago.

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

Showing 3 of 3,436 records for Platt in the United States.

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

Australia774 records

774 records of the Platt name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 393
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 122
  • Other Australian records 259
  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 Jane Platt

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Majestic, sailing from London in 1838. Native of Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1844. Married 1844 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 35.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. 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 Catherine Platt

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Tory, sailing from London in 1845. Native of Whitehaven, Cumberland. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1846.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. 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 Joseph Platt

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Medway, sailing from Downs in 1825. Native of Bury, Lancashire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1835.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 774 records for Platt in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · 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).

Germany118 records

118 records of the Platt 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 Burkhardt Platt

    Born 1896; from Flörsheim, Wiesbaden. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 4 December 1918 (Pioneer Battalion No. 21).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Heinrich Platt

    From Friedensdorf, Biedenkopf. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 15 October 1918.

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

Showing 2 of 118 records for Platt in Germany.

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).

Canada75 records

75 records of the Platt name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 23
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 20
  • Other Canadian records 32
  1. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Stanle Platt

    Left New York in 1783 aboard the L'Abondance, bound for Port Mattoon, aged 29.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Mary Platt

    Buried in 1991 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 86.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Oliver Arthur Platt

    Died 2001, aged 75; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.

Showing 3 of 75 records for Platt in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

United Kingdom70 records

70 records of the Platt name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 59
  • Welsh wills index cards 4
  • Other British records 7
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Leon Jablonski Platt

    Buried in 1914 at Valley Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 75.

    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 Henry Platt

    Will proved in 1915; of Llanfairfechan, Carnarvon.

    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 Robert Platt

    Died 1917. Named in the roll of honour (1926).

    National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain)

Showing 3 of 70 records for Platt in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. 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).

Netherlands41 records

41 records of the Platt name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 28
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 10
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 3
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Katharina Antonie Platt

    Married in 1944 in Opsterland; housekeeper.

    Open Archives, AlleFriezen (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Lodewijk Henri Arnold Platt

    Died 1960 in Tilburg, aged 53.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Godert Alexander Platt

    Died 1913 in 's-Gravenhage, aged 54.

    Open Archives, Haags Gemeentearchief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 41 records for Platt in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

France11 records

11 records of the Platt 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 Marcel Armand Platt

    Born 1922 in Carrières-sous-Poissy; died 1992 in Poissy (Yvelines).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Jeanne Henriette Platt

    Born 1907 in Belgium; died 1990 in Cannes (Alpes-Maritimes).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  3. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Stanley Platt

    Born 1913 in the United Kingdom; died 1992 in Nice (Alpes-Maritimes).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 3 of 11 records for Platt 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).

New Zealand6 records

6 records of the Platt name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Ivy Lois Platt

    Died 1978, aged 50; buried at Waimairi Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Henry Platt

    Died 1922, aged 58; buried at Sydenham Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 6 records for Platt in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Platt.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Platt 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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