The Read surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 17,048 people carried this name — #2,127 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 17,300 people counted. That is up 2% from 16,736 in 2000.
Where the name comes from
The origin of the Read surname
A surname from Old English, a less common spelling variant of Reid.
English and Scottish surname, variant of Reed.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Read» (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 103 people named Read 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.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where 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 66 people named Read.
Most of them — 40 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 11 départements, most often French Guiana.
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
33 people named Read live in Switzerland.
They live in 5 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
23 people named Read have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 65 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
76 people named Read 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).
Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s
Read was found among the farmers of 17 counties.
It was most frequent in Wiltshire: 50 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 200. 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 mapPer 10,000 farmers, by county
And 9 more counties.
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 print
Read in American newspapers,
1874–1921.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 8,348,006 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Read,
with a public archive behind them.
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John Read d. 1847 · inventor
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Peter Read d. 2018 · camera operator
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Ennis Read d. 1773 · plantation owner
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Phyllis Mary Read d. 1933
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Elizabeth Harriet Read d. 1926
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Isabella Mary Read d. 1937
Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Read.
When the index is not enough
This page says where Read 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.