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Sutherland Family History

Sutherland Name Meaning

Scottish (Caithness): habitational name from the Scottish county of Sutherland named with Old Norse súthr ‘south southern’ + land ‘land’ because the territory lay south of Scandinavia and the Norse colonies in the Orkney and Shetland Islands.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Litherland, Sunderland, Helland, Erland, Hetland, Sweetland, Rutland

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Hint: Try searching for a relative alive in 1940.

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Where is the Sutherland family from?

You can see how Sutherland families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Sutherland family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Sutherland families were found in and Scotland in 1841. In 1840 there were 96 Sutherland families living in New York. This was about 29% of all the recorded Sutherland's in USA. New York had the highest population of Sutherland families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Sutherland surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Sutherland ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Teacher were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Sutherland. 14% of Sutherland men worked as a Farmer and 8% of Sutherland women worked as a Teacher. Some less common occupations for Americans named Sutherland were Carpenter and Clerk. .

View Census Data for Sutherland | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Farmer
    14%
  • Laborer
    11%
  • Salesman
    6%
  • Carpenter
    4%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Teacher
    8%
  • Stenographer
    7%
  • Housewife
    7%
  • Clerk
    5%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Sutherland family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 417,000 census records available for the last name Sutherland. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Sutherland census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search US census records for Sutherland

Passenger Lists

There are 75,000 immigration records available for the last name Sutherland. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Sutherland immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 51,000 military records available for the last name Sutherland. For the veterans among your Sutherland ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Sutherland military records

You've only scratched the surface of Sutherland family history

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What is the average Sutherland lifespan?

Between 1944 and 2004, in the United States, Sutherland life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1944, and highest in 1999. The average life expectancy for Sutherland in 1944 was 26, and 75 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Sutherland

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