Talk:Smith (surname)

Talk
The comparative note seems a little out of place to me.15:35, 14 May 2006 (UTC)
 * I think it's an intersting tidbit - might be better titled as "Trivia". bd2412  T 15:37, 14 May 2006 (UTC)

"Black slaves adopting the name" ?
Is this the most historically accurate verb by which to describe how African Americans ended up with European/Anglo names? I'd suggest a slave who came from Africa, spoke no English, and was branded by his master with the plantation name could hardly be described as having "adopted" a name.

Later, a freed ex-slaves who could have had no knowledge of their African national origin, and who needed a last name to support transition to engaging society as a free individual, would find it easiest to appropriate the name of the former master; again, in such situations, "adopted" is not doing justice to the milieu in which the decision was made.

As a source of learning, education or higher thinking, this word ought to be changed. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.138.230.63 (talk) 21:53, 28 December 2012 (UTC)

I don't have any sources to cite at the moment, but I don't think it's accurate to say the popularity of the name Smith among african americans is because they adopted the names of their former masters. It's far more likely they adopted the trade of working as a blacksmith, and the name. Donb316 (talk) 06:45, 19 February 2017 (UTC)

Yiddish Name
This can't be correct: סטשמעידער (Schmieder) because the Yiddish reads S-t-sh-m-e-y-d-e-r (SAMECH, TET, SHIN, MEM, AYIN, YUD, DALET, AYIN, RESH). Now, if Schmieder is in fact the Yiddish for Smith, then you'd have to write something like SHIN, MEM, YUD, DALET, AYIN, RESH. Wathiik (talk) 08:58, 1 May 2013 (UTC)

Also note that ey is spelled with two yuds in Yiddish, not with ayin and yud. But a name like Schmieder = Shmider would just be spelled with a single yud, because the name and word Schmi(e)d never actually was pronounced with a diphthong. Wathiik (talk) 14:13, 1 May 2013 (UTC)
 * I've removed it, partly because it's misspelled and partly because I'm unconvinced that Schmieder is a Yiddish name at all. Not one of the people listed at that page as having the surname Schmieder is described as being Jewish. —Aɴɢʀ (talk) 10:27, 24 July 2014 (UTC)

"Famous Smiths" additions
I added a section "Famous 'Smiths'"

I only added one Smith. Please feel free to ad other famous 'Smiths'..

I do not feel that the notion that Ellis Island officials randomly assigned last names to immigrants is an "urban legend". It is best described as just a "misconception".

Our family name on the Serbian side was changed to Savage because of a cigarette ad the Ellis Island person saw for Savage Cigarettes. It most assuredly happened. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 130.76.96.144 (talk) 17:04, 21 February 2012 (UTC)

Multiple Smith Origins
The intro says 'the name being English itself', which seems to undercut the possiblity of other origins.

The mention of Scots adopting the name Smith to hide their affiliations to the Jacobite rebellion seems to be understating the Smith presence in Scotland. Possibly the most famous Smith in history, Adam Smith, was clearly Scottish. Are we to infer that he was probably the descendant of a clan that wanted to hide its affiliation to said rebellion? That the name may be deemed primarily English seems fair enough, but the Angle influence in southern Scotland seems a more likely reason for the presence of Smiths in Scotland.

To make it clear, how about dividing the name into sections? Say English Smith, Scottish Smith, German Smith...and so on. This way, a more accurate account of the multiple possibilities will be shown. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.82.221.96 (talk • contribs)

I thought Smith was Irish, originally Mac Gabhann (son of the smith) and Anglicanised to Smith. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.64.77.238 (talk) 21:24, 16 February 2008 (UTC)

"Smithy" as a surname
I have not been able to establish Smithy as a surname, though it certainly is a nickname used for a number of notable people. Could someone weigh in and say a word about validating Smithy as a surname? Thanks. --User:Ceyockey ( talk to me ) 14:44, 16 March 2008 (UTC)


 * If you can't find it, I don't think it would belong here. A glance at search results over at familysearch suggests that smYthE may be an older form of Smithee/Smithy, and smythe is probably just a holdover spelling of smith from a time when spelling was less standard. I think it'd take some research into surnames and linguistics, and probably the spread of literacy, to establish any particular notability to Smithy on it's own, or even as a variant of smith. ThuranX (talk) 15:13, 17 May 2009 (UTC)


 * You can generally work out the probable original form of a name if you go on what it sounds like, rather than the actual spelling. All these names were spoken long before most people could write, so when confronted with a spelling variant such as 'Smythe' then try pronouncing it in the possible alternate ways - Sm-y-the (usually modern pronunciation - rhymes with Hythe) but also 'Smith-ee' - the likely original middle ages pronunciation, and as mentioned above, referring to the smith's smithy, i.e., where he does his blacksmithing work. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.112.59.209 (talk) 18:45, 8 February 2011 (UTC)

Portuguese?
"Ferreira" is not the Portuguese equivalent of Smith. Although Ferreira could translate to "blacksmith woman", the name actually does not denote a profession. It's just a coincidence: it's actually a toponym, the name of a river in Northern Portugal. As for the masculine version (Ferreiro), I have never seen that name in Portugal, I think it just doesn't exist as a family name. Gazilion (talk) 09:30, 26 March 2017 (UTC)

Occupation-based names common among freedmen and slaves
As mentioned above, some number of southern American Blacks took the surname "Smith" because that is what they, or their father, were by trade. Occupational names - Glover, Turner (although not the most famous example, Joiner, Driver, Carpenter, Barber, Cook for example, if based on an actual trade, labeled people who were more likely to among the groups most capable of buying themselves out of slavery, of successfully making a new start in in Canada or the northern US, and so forth. There's some scholarship on this, but I haven't seen it in 40-odd years.  Anmccaff (talk) 18:45, 13 June 2017 (UTC)

External links modified
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Corrupted version of Hungarian Kovacs
Can anyone confirm the notion/theory that the Jewish surname Koufax is a corruption of the Hungarian Kovacs (I believe in Yiddish)? MSTVD (talk) 19:55, 6 July 2022 (UTC)

While we're at it, can anyone confirm if Kowar is Sorbian for Smith? MSTVD (talk) 20:17, 6 July 2022 (UTC)

Smith
moved from Bot requests

In the article smith_(surname) is a part, where the author stated that immigrates in the 1840s and later never changed surnames. However the only source for that states a dubious page, or rather it' archived version of it, where it is not disproven, but the author made an anecdote about one amigrant who changed his name before ellis island. This isn't a prove, this is an insult to every immigrant. whos name was changed when they entered america. 84.119.8.64 (talk) 19:57, 31 August 2022 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jonesey95 (talk • contribs)