How the smiths took over Europe

Author: Frank Jacobs / Source: Big Think

‘Smith’ is not just the most common surname in many English-speaking countries
In local translations, it’s also the most common occupational surname in a large part of Europe
Ironically, Smiths are so ubiquitous today because smiths were so special a few centuries ago

Although very few people are smiths by profession these days, there are millions of Smiths by surname the world over.

It’s the most popular surname in Britain, Australia, New Zealand and the United States, as well as the second most popular surname in Canada and the fifth most popular one in Ireland. And they’re a thriving bunch, at least in the U.S.: the 2010 Census (1) counted 2,442,977 Americans called Smith, 2.8% more than in 2000.

Curiously, ‘Smith’ also is one of the most popular surnames across most of Europe –translated in the various local vernaculars, of course. This map shows the most common occupational surnames in each country. By colour-coding the professions, this map shows a remarkable pro-smith consistency across Europe – as well as some curious regional exceptions.

Meet the Smiths, Millers, Priests and Imams – the most popular occupational surnames across Europe.

‘Smith’ popular throughout Europe

‘Smith’, in all its variations, is the most popular occupational surname throughout Europe. Not just in the UK, but also in:

Belgium (Desmet) and Luxembourg, (Schmitt);
France (Lefebvre), Italy (Ferrari) and Portugal (Ferreira);
Slovenia (Kovačič), Croatia (Kovačevič), Hungary (Kovács), Slovakia (Kováč), Poland (Kowalski), Lithuania (Kavaliauskas), Latvia (Kalējs) and Belarus (Kavalyov);
Estonia (Sepp); and
Russia (Kuznetsov).

‘Miller’ on top in many Germanic-language countries

‘Miller’ is the most popular occupational surname in many Germanic-language countries, but also in Spain and Ukraine (perhaps because the grain in both countries is mainly in the plain):

There’s Müller (in Germany and Switzerland), Møller (in Denmark and Norway) and Möller (Sweden);
Molina (in Spain – the map also shows the most popular surname in Catalonia/Catalan: Ferrer, i.e. ‘Smith’); and
Melnik (in Ukraine).

Clergy surnames rule in the Balkans

Catholic clergy must remain celibate, so ‘Priest’ as a surname is rare to non-existent throughout Europe. Except in the Balkans, where Catholicism is largely absent. Here, the Orthodox and Islamic clergies have passed on the title from father to son, eventually as a surname, to popular effect. Orthodox clergy are addressed as papa or pope (which means ‘father’ – so the surname rather redundantly translates to ‘father’s son’). Islamic teachers or imams are known by the Turkish/Persian term hodzha. An overview:

Popov (in Bulgaria), Popovic (in both Serbia and Montenegro), Popovski (in Macedonia);
Popa (in Romania);
Papadopoulos (in Greece); and
Hodžić (in Bosnia-Herzegovina), Hoxha (in both Kosovo and Albania).