The Smith surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 2,442,977 people carried this name — #1 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 121 people counted. That is up 3% from 2,376,206 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Smith surname
An English surname originating as an occupation (the most common in Britain, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand).
From smith or Middle English Smith (“a surname”), alternative form of Smyth, itself from smyth (“smith”).
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Smith» (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 753 births for the Smith 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 33,400 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. The count includes the spelling Smyth.
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 3,733 people named Smith 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 1,511 people named Smith.
722 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 57 départements, most often La Réunion.
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 Switzerland’s population statistics
1,065 people named Smith live in Switzerland.
They live in 22 of Switzerland’s 26 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 Poland’s population register
482 people named Smith have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 1,280 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in all 16 of Poland’s voivodeships, most of all in Masovian.
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 389 people named Smith 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 Antwerp.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere 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
4,855 people named Smith are counted in Sweden, Norway and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Norway publishes only surnames with 200 or more bearers. 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) · Statistics Norway (SSB, ssb.no), table 12891, 2025 — CC BY 4.0 · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Smith in American newspapers,
1893–1944.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 10,010,523 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Smith,
with a public archive behind them.
-
John Stafford Smith 1750–1836 · composer -
Robert Smith 1757–1842 · lawyer -
William Smith 1769–1839 · geologist -
William Smith 1796–1887 · lawyer -
Juana María de los Dolores de León Smith 1798–1872
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 124 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Smith.
- Smeets 151 · U.S. census
- Smet 680 · U.S. census
- Smets 168 · U.S. census
- Smigielski 536 · U.S. census
- Smirnoff 188 · U.S. census
- Smit 3,164 · U.S. census
- Smits 2,409 · U.S. census
- Smolarek 277 · U.S. census
- Smolen 1,655 · U.S. census
- Smolinski 2,125 · U.S. census
- So 7,456 · U.S. census
- Soares 11,694 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Smith 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.