The Wood surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 250,715 people carried this name — #84 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 1,180 people counted. That is up 1% from 247,299 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Wood surname
An English topographic surname for someone who lived in or near a wood.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Wood» (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 14 births for the Wood name in 1890.
Most were registered in Leinster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 600 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 Switzerland’s population statistics
232 people named Wood live in Switzerland.
They live in 17 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 France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 224 people named Wood.
Most of them — 176 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 19 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 72 people named Wood 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 City of Buenos Aires.
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
68 people named Wood have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 185 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 14 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 Belgium’s population register
At least 24 people named Wood 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 Brussels-Capital.
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
319 people named Wood 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.
In print
Wood in American newspapers,
1877–1920.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 9,770,839 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Wood,
with a public archive behind them.
-
John Wood 1704–1754 · architect -
Robert Wood 1717–1771 · writer -
Silas Wood 1769–1847 · lawyer -
Daniel Wood 1800–1892 -
Daniel P. Wood 1819–1891 · politician
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 162 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Wood.
- Woloszyn 798 · U.S. census
- Wolski 1,965 · U.S. census
- Wolter 4,511 · U.S. census
- Wong 111,371 · U.S. census
- Wonner 130 · U.S. census
- Woock 240 · U.S. census
- Woods 177,425 · U.S. census
- Woog 155 · U.S. census
- Worms 298 · U.S. census
- Wormser 282 · U.S. census
- Wos 446 · U.S. census
- Wourms 191 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Wood 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.