Most common surnames in the world and the surprising meaning behind them
There’s often talk about the meaning behind first names but have you ever wondered what your surname could mean? If your last name is a common one, this article may be for you to find out.
From China to the United States, there are various monikers across the globe. While we going to delve deeper into the most common surnames in different countries and the true meaning of them.
Seems a little weird to imagine in this day and age with everyone using surnames, but you may be surprised to learn that the history of last names were such that there was a point where only nobles were given them.
In parts of the world, surnames are a fairly new invention. Meanwhile, in some countries, other social classes only adopted surnames after royal families.
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There are several factors that influence why a surname is common. From religion to royalty, these things can influence why certain last names were chosen, especially in the early days when they were initially introduced.
According to online language learning platform Babbel, here are some of the most common surnames in the world...
Smith
Smith is the most common surname in the United States and many other English-speaking countries, including Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.
As an occupational name, Smith was used to referred to someone working with metal and it originated in England and Scotland in the Middle Ages.
There are said to be 2.3 million Smiths in the US alone.
Wang
Last names in China were actually introduced in 2852 BC. Wang is an ancestral name which translates to 'king'.
According to Babbel, a whopping 92 million people share this surname in just China, never mind globally.
The reason for this is likely due to many Chinese royal families switched their name to Wang following the fall of the first Qin dynasty emperor. The aim was to help keep their royal status and prevent assassination.
García
In Spain and Ecuador, García prevails as well as in many other Spanish-speaking countries.
With Spanish being spoken widely in the US, in states like California and Texas, it mean that it's a very popular surname there too.
Babbel notes that García derives from the Latin word 'garsea' which means to 'bear'.
Mohamed
Mohammed is an extremely common surname in Islam as it takes after the Prophet Muhammad. People choose to spelt it differently, including Mahamat and even Mohammadi.
As well as it being popular in Islam, it's also prevalent in countries such as Chad, Egypt, Yemen and Comoros.
Tesfaye
In Ethiopia, Tesfaye is a common surname as it derives from the Ethiopian language Amharic tesfa, which is defined as 'my hope'.
Kim
According to Babbel, in North and South Korea, Kim shines as the most common surname, as well as in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. A rich meaning, Kim translates to 'gold'.
However, the reason it’s so popular is because of it’s connection to royalty. Similar to many other countries, for a while Korean people didn’t have surnames and it was mainly the royal family who did.
But when other social classes, like the working class joined in, they chose royal family names like Kim.
Maxine Harrison