The 20 Most Common Last Names in Iowa

In southeast Iowa where I grew up, I thought the state was filled with people with last names like Hammes, Greiner, Lee, and Sieren. Turns out only one of those is actually in the top 100.

Forebears tells us that Smith is the most common last name in Iowa. It's also the most popular last name in the entire United States with more than 2.5 million Smith's around the 50 states. It's also the most common last name in over a dozen countries including England, Australia, Scotland, and Canada.

Here's what Forebears says about Smith:

Descendant of the metal worker. The most common of all surnames, and might of itself furnish matter enough for a volume. The word is derived from the Anglo—Saxon Smitan, to smite or strike.

"From whence comes Smith, all be he knight or squire,

But from the Smith that forgeth at the fire?"

Here's Iowa's Top 20, including how many of each are in the state:

1. Smith: 24,679
2. Johnson: 23,171
3. Miller: 17,846
4. Anderson: 15,505
5. Brown: 12,853
6. Davis: 10,336
7. Jones: 9,968
8. Williams: 9,926
9. Thompson: 9,096
10. Wilson: 9,016
11. Nelson: 8,503
12. Clark: 7,972
13. Peterson: 7,332
14. Hansen: 7,130
15. Meyer: 6,551
16. White: 6,252
17. Moore: 6,223
18. Martin: 6.046
19. Thomas: 5,644
20. Taylor: 5,452

You can see the list of Iowa's 100 most common last names here.

[via Forebears]