Interesting how many of these last names referred to old professions. Smith (blacksmith), Miller (miller of grain), also Melnik means miller.
reply
A Hilarious but intriguing take
reply
Most of them have such connections or distance relations...
reply
These maps are really interesting. I noticed that Brazil and Portugal share the most common last name, but in Brazil they add the 'da'. Do you have any idea why?
reply
Must be because it sounds better to the ear. LOL
reply
32 sats \ 2 replies \ @398ja 8 Mar
"Ngo," as most common name in Cameroon is ridiculous, tbh. It is just a name addon that literally means "the daughter of" (a bit like "von" or "de" in European aristocratic names)
reply
That's super interesting! I know that in Brazil it's common to give the last name 'jรบnior', which also means 'son of'.
reply
16 sats \ 0 replies \ @398ja 8 Mar
Yeah, it's quite similar. Also, Ngo is only common to one of the many tribes that populate the country, and I doubt they make the majority of the population. On top of that, it's only a female "name," as mentioned in my previous comment.
reply
21 sats \ 1 reply \ @grayruby 8 Mar
Fun fact: Despite the prevalence of the name, I don't think I have ever known someone with the last name Smith.
reply
These maps only tell us the most prevalent ones, without having information about the percentage, so it is perfectly normal for many people not to know any. It's just a perception, but as a European I notice that many Smiths appear in American movies :)
reply
In Turkey, "Yฤฑlmaz" means "Fearless".
reply
In Portuguese, 'Silva' refers to the blackberry bush. In Portugal, last names can be quite amusing, and here are the translations of some of the most popular ones:
Santos: Saints Pereira: Pear tree Fernandes: Son of Fernando Rodrigues: Son of Rodrigo Costa: Coast Ferreira: Blacksmith Cunha: Wedge
reply
Cool.
reply
16 sats \ 1 reply \ @Atreus 8 Mar
Once there were just 3 guys who were the original Smiths, Gonzales', and Hernandez', and their descendents conquered the world so hard their names passed into daily routine.
reply
๐Ÿ˜‚
reply
8 sats \ 1 reply \ @OT 8 Mar
Interesting
What's the link between Kazakhstan and Korea?
reply
I have no clue either, I'd like to know too.
reply
I'm surprised Smith is so dominate in the ex-british empire. Were blacksmiths particularly horny or something?
reply
I guess so
reply
there are blacksmiths, locksmiths, goldsmiths, woodsmiths...
reply
Right, it's supposed to mean someone who works with metal. Just wondering why that particular line of work became so dominant.
The name refers to a smith, originally deriving from smiรฐ or smiรพ, the Old English term meaning one who works in metal, related to the word smitan, the Old English form of smite, which also meant strike (as in early 17th century Biblical English: the verb "to smite" = to hit).
reply
10 sats \ 1 reply \ @kruw 8 Mar
Interesting that "Taiwan" has (Republic of China) written beneath it. I'm surprised there's a "Mohammed" listed as the most common in North America (Trinidad & Tobago).
reply
Interesting that "Taiwan" has (Republic of China) written beneath it.
That's official name of the country.
reply
I know someone from France with the last name Martin. For some reason I always assumed it was an unusual French name.
reply
I bet John Doe wins
reply
Kim in Kazakhstan ๐Ÿ‡ฐ๐Ÿ‡ฟ and Uzbekistan ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ฟ
reply
Its suprising theres only 1 in Philippines
reply
I disagree for the most common last name in India. It's not 'Devi', It's 'Kumar' for males and 'Kumari' for Females. Also, it's not 'Chaudhari' in Nepal.