The Shepherd surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 60,479 people carried this name — #557 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 4,880 people counted. That is up 4% from 57,935 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Shepherd surname
An English surname originating as an occupation.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Shepherd» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
66 people named Shepherd live in Switzerland.
They live in 8 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 France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 48 people named Shepherd.
Most of them — 38 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 3 départements, most often Oise.
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 Argentina’s national register
At least 26 people named Shepherd 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 Poland’s population register
20 people named Shepherd have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 84 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
95 people named Shepherd 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.
Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s
Shepherd was found among the farmers of 23 counties.
It was most frequent in Cumberland and Westmorland: 38 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 263. 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. His list gives one count for the spellings Shepherd and Sheppard.
Where it concentrates, on the mapPer 10,000 farmers, by county
And 15 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 Scotland, 1880s
Shepherd was 10 in every 10,000 names in Scotland.
That is about 1 in 1,000. Its home there, in Guppy’s words: “Scattered.” He counted the more than 20,000 names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, taking Scotland as a whole, and listed only the names that reached 10 in every 10,000.
H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), appendix: alphabetical list of the most frequent Scottish names, p. 594 — public domain · names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, per 10,000 for the whole country.
In Scotland’s registers today
Shepherd was recorded 87 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.
That made it the 299th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 136. 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
429 families named Shepherd, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.
Each family is counted by its head. About 2,408 people lived in those households, 5.6 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 15 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
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. 261 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.
In print
Shepherd in American newspapers,
1902–1908.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 8,287 pages in all carry the name.
In print
Shepherd in Australian newspapers,
1810s–2000s.
168,661 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Shepherd. The most, 33,874, date from the 1930s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in South Australia, at 1.3 times its expected share.
Articles, by state
Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Shepherd.
Who carried it
People named Shepherd,
with a public archive behind them.
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John Shepherd 1764–1836 · botanist -
John Shepherd 1765– · horse trainer -
William Shepherd 1768–1847 · politician -
Theodosia B. Shepherd 1845–1906 · entrepreneur -
James Affleck Shepherd 1866–1946 · writer
Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 272 lives in all are documented under this name.
In the public record
People named Shepherd,
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 States4,220 records
- U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 1,900
- U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 750
- Other U.S. records 1,570
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Example: U.S. war memorial War record Franklin Steve ShepherdBorn 1947; from North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1967 in Kontum, South Vietnam. Buried at Fishing Creek Arbor Bapt Church Cemetery, Wilkesboro, North Carolina.
U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) -
Example: U.S. registration card, 1942 Military record Raymond C. ShepherdBorn 1924 in West Virginia. Enlisted 1943 at Richmond, Virginia; driver from Clerke County, Virginia. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1968, buried at Baltimore National Cemetery, Maryland.
U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) -
Example: passenger manifest, 1903 Passenger record Loiza ShepherdArrived at New York in 1835 aboard the Governor Troup from Liverpool, aged 11; gardener. From Warwickshore, Scotland.
U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
Showing 3 of 4,220 records for Shepherd in the United States.
Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · 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) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL). 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).
Australia3,721 records
- Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 1,848
- Tasmanian Names Index 771
- Other Australian records 1,102
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Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829 Transportation record John ShepherdTransported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Agincourt, sailing from Woolwich in 1844. Native of East Barnet, Hertfordshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1850.
Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) -
Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829 Transportation record Charlotte ShepherdTransported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Platina, sailing from London in 1837. Native of Greenwich, Kent. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1841.
Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) -
Example: probate petition, 1848 Probate record Albert Edward ShepherdDied 1918 in Abroad On Active Service, Tasmania. Will registered in Tasmania in 1919.
Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
Showing 3 of 3,721 records for Shepherd in Australia.
Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (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); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).
Canada371 records
- Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 196
- Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 61
- Other Canadian records 114
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Example: German emigration file, 1883 Emigration record John ShepherdLeft New York in 1783 aboard the Clinton, bound for Annapolis and St Johns, aged 30.
Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. -
Example: passenger manifest, 1903 Passenger record Wm ShepherdCame to Ontario in 1881 aboard the Teutonia, landing at Quebec, bound for Hamilton, Ontario; English.
Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. -
Example: Canadian cemetery Burial record Ann Elizabeth ShepherdBuried in 1983 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 84.
City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
Showing 3 of 371 records for Shepherd in Canada.
Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence. 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); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).
United Kingdom267 records
- War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 150
- St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 45
- Other British records 72
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Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919 War record Thomas ShepherdBorn 1895 at Murieshade; ploughman. Served in the First World War. Named in the Morayshire roll of honour (1921).
National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) -
Example: burial register, 1858 Burial record Mary ShepherdBuried in 1903 at Mar Place Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 28.
Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. -
Example: probate petition, 1848 Probate record Samuel ShepherdWill proved in 1935; of Clevedon, Somerset.
National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
Showing 3 of 267 records for Shepherd in the United Kingdom.
Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · 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. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).
Netherlands150 records
- Dutch population registers 74
- Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 74
- Dutch church registers before 1811 2
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Example: marriage register, 1911 Marriage record Maria Sophya ShepherdMarried in 1848 in Maastricht. Died 1894 in Harderwijk, aged 74.
Open Archives, Regionaal Historisch Centrum Limburg (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Gelders Archief (CC BY 4.0) -
Example: civil register, 1880 Death record Camille Charles ShepherdBorn 1893 in Hatert. Died 1911 in Maastricht, aged 18.
Open Archives, Gelders Archief (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Regionaal Historisch Centrum Limburg (CC BY 4.0) -
Example: marriage register, 1911 Marriage record Joanna Maria ShepherdMarried in 1919 in Amby. Died 1959 in Maastricht, aged 67.
Open Archives, Regionaal Historisch Centrum Limburg (CC BY 4.0)
Showing 3 of 150 records for Shepherd 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).
New Zealand82 records
- Christchurch City cemetery records 63
- Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 7
- Other New Zealand records 12
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Example: burial register, 1858 Burial record Emma Susana ShepherdDied 1920, aged 76; buried at Sydenham Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.
Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) -
Example: burial register, 1858 Burial record Kenneth Leonard ShepherdBorn 1920, died 2000; buried at Kaiapoi Public Cemetery, Canterbury.
Waimakariri District Council (CC BY 4.0) -
Example: burial register, 1858 Burial record Jean Millicent ShepherdDied 1999, aged 83; buried at Fairhall Cemetery, Marlborough.
Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0)
Showing 3 of 82 records for Shepherd in New Zealand.
Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Waimakariri District Council (CC BY 4.0) · Marlborough District 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).
France8 records
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Example: French death register, 1930 Death record Roderick Harvey ShepherdBorn 1943 in the United Kingdom; died 1992 in Paris.
Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte) -
Example: French death register, 1930 Death record Hilda Lilias ShepherdBorn 1912 in Chantilly; died 1989 in Creil (Oise).
Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
Showing 2 of 8 records for Shepherd 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).
Norway3 records
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Example: U.S. census, 1910 Census record Leif D'Arez ShepherdCensus of 1910: Lysaker Gaard, Bærum; born 1884 in Asker.
Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
Showing 1 of 3 records for Shepherd in Norway.
Counts: Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).
Other spellings of this name
The same name, spelled another way.
Spellings that H. B. Guppy (England and Wales, 1890) or the Registrar-General for Ireland (births index of 1890) counted as one name together with Shepherd.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Shepherd.
- Shelley 14,300 · U.S. census
- Shelly 5,134 · U.S. census
- Shelton 90,517 · U.S. census
- Shen 12,839 · U.S. census
- Shepard 39,430 · U.S. census
- Shephard 6,859 · U.S. census
- Sheppard 36,960 · U.S. census
- Sherer 4,674 · U.S. census
- Sheridan 22,177 · U.S. census
- Sherlock 5,211 · U.S. census
- Sherman 70,502 · U.S. census
- Sherrill 13,631 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Shepherd 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.