Ready for a name quiz?
(1) What's the most common surname in America?
(2) What's the most common male given (first) name?
(3) What's the most common female given name?
(Answers at the end of this article.)
There are over 1.6 million surnames in the United States. Researching these given names and surnames is one of the basic search strategies for family historians.
Experienced family historians know that you should always be on the lookout for spelling variations when searching for your ancestors. Spelling was not important until the middle to late nineteenth century. Some of your ancestors may not have known how to spell their name, especially those with very little education.
Be especially careful when searching census indexes and similar sources. You should never say, "But, our family never spelled our name that way!" Otherwise you may overlook your ancestors' names.
Some people signed records, such as wills and deeds, with an "X" or other mark. A county clerk observed that a man signed a land deed in 1850 with two X's: a large "X" and a small "x". The clerk asked the man, "I know that you can't read, so you signed your "X". But what does the small "x" stand for?" Well, the man replied, "That stands for Junior."
People may have been known throughout their life by a nickname. My grandfather, for example, was Alfred Sperry of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, but was often known as "Allie." He is listed in the 1900 census as "Alla Sperry."
Abby is a familiar form for Abigail, Delia for Cordelia, Ella for Eleanor, Eva for Evangeline, Sadie for Sarah, Sam for Samantha, Tish for Letitia, Trudy for Gertrude, and so forth.
Naming patterns, and situations where family names were repeated, may be important clues in family history research. The first son may have been named after his father's father, the second son after his mother's father, and the third son after his father. The first daughter may have been named after her mother's mother, the second daughter after her father's mother, and the third daughter after her mother.
Biblical names, such as “Daniel” and “Matthew,” were often used. It's always interesting to see children in early America named "Experience" or "Wealthy." Other unusual names include “Preserved Fish” and “Etta Onions.”
Some Internet sites that may be useful in locating surnames of your ancestors are:
Ancestry.com
FamilySearch Internet Genealogy Service
RootsWeb.com
Surname Springboard Index
Surname Web
Tips for Locating Your Ancestors' Names
Be aware of spelling variations when researching your ancestors, especially when using census indexes.
Your ancestors may not have known how to spell their names.
People may have been known throughout their life, or listed in records, by one or more nicknames.
Name dictionaries and Internet sites may be useful for learning more about your ancestors' names.
Answers to quiz: (1) Smith (2) William (3) Mary.
For Further Reference
Name dictionaries and reference sources are available which may give you the meaning, origin, and spelling variations of given names and surnames of your ancestors.
Barber, Henry. British Family Names. London, 1903.
Bardsley, Charles Wareing. A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames. Baltimore, 1996.
Bell, Robert. The Book of Scots-Irish Family Names. Belfast, 1997.
Black, George Fraser. The Surnames of Scotland. New York, 1979.
Cottle, Basil. The Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. 2nd ed. Baltimore, 1967
Dauzat, Albert. Dictionnaire Etymologique . . . France. Paris, 1938.
Dellquest, Augustus Wilfrid. These Names of Ours: A Book of Surnames. New York, 1938.
Dolan, J. R. English Ancestral Names: The Evolution of the Surname from Medieval Occupations. New York, 1972.
Fucilla, Joseph Guerin. Our Italian Surnames. Baltimore, 1987.
Grehan, Ida. The Dictionary of Irish Family Names. Boulder, Colo., 1997.
Guggenheimer, Heinrich W. and Eva H. Guggenheimer. Jewish Family Names and their Origins. New York, 1992.
Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford, 1988.
Harrison, Henry. Surnames of the United Kingdom. Baltimore, 1969.
Hook, J.N. Family Names: How Our Surnames Came to America. New York, 1982.
Jones, George Fenwick. German-American Names. Baltimore, 1990.
Kelly, Arthur C.M. Names, Names, and More Names: Locating Your Dutch Ancestors in Colonial America. Orem, Utah, 1999.
Kelly, Patrick. Irish Family Names. Detroit, 1976.
MacLysaght, Edward. A Guide to Irish Surnames. Baltimore, 1964.
Irish Families: Their Names, Arms, and Origins. 4th rev. ed. Dublin, 1985.
More Irish Families. Rev. ed. Dublin, 1996.
The Surnames of Ireland. 6th ed. Dublin, 1985.
O’Laughlin, Michael C. The Book of Irish Families. Kansas City, Mo., 1997.
The Master Book of Irish Surnames. Kansas City, Mo., 1993.
Price, Barbara. "Swedish Naming Patterns." Ancestry Magazine, May/June 1998.
Platt, Lyman D. Hispanic Surnames and Family History. Baltimore, 1996.
Reaney, Percy Hide. A Dictionary of English Surnames. 3rd ed. London, 1997.
Redmonds, George. Surnames and Genealogy: A New Approach. Boston, 1997.
Robb, H. Amanda and Andrew Chesler. Encyclopedia of American Family Names. New
York, 1995.
Rowlands, John and Sheila. The Surnames of Wales. Baltimore, 1996.
Smith, Elsdon Coles. New Dictionary of American Family Names. New York, 1973.
American Surnames. Philadelphia, 1969.
Unbegaun, Boris Ottokar. Russian Surnames. Oxford, 1972.
Why U Can’t Find Your Ancestors. RootsWeb’s Guide to Tracing Family Trees.
Whyte, Donald. Scottish Surnames and Families. Edinburgh, 1996.
Kip Sperry is an associate professor of family history at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.
Kip's Tips
