Genealogy & Demographics Kentucky 2010 Census Top 20 Surnames

Most Common Last Names in Kentucky

Kentucky state flag

Kentucky

Top 20 Most Common Surnames - 2010 Census

Top 3 — Kentucky

#2 welsh
Jones
Patronymic
30,292 people
1 in every 148 Kentucky residents

A Welsh patronymic meaning 'son of John,' derived from the Welsh given name Ieuan or Siôn. Welsh and border-English families bearing the Jones surname were among the earliest settlers in central and eastern Kentucky, and the name appears prominently in land grant records from Fayette and Madison counties dating to the 1780s.

#1 english
Johnson
Patronymic
33,998 people
1 in every 132 Kentucky residents

From the Middle English patronymic meaning 'son of John,' itself derived from the Hebrew Yohanan, meaning 'God is gracious.' Johnson became one of the most common surnames carried through the Cumberland Gap by Scots-Irish settlers in the 1770s and 1780s, and it remains the single most frequent surname in Kentucky today.

#3 english
Brown
Descriptive
28,969 people
1 in every 155 Kentucky residents

From Old English brun, referring to a person with brown hair, complexion, or clothing. Brown arrived in Kentucky primarily through Virginia and North Carolina settler families who entered the state along the Wilderness Road in the late eighteenth century.

Name origins — top 20 surnames

Name origins - top 20 surnames

Name origins — top 20 surnames

Heritage

Appalachian Roots and the Cumberland Gap Migration

Most of Kentucky's dominant surnames trace directly to the Scots-Irish and English settlers who pushed through the Cumberland Gap into Harlan, Bell, and Knox counties from the 1770s onward. Daniel Boone's Wilderness Road, blazed in 1775, funneled thousands of Virginia and Carolina families into the Bluegrass region within a single generation. Names like Hall, Adams, and Howard became concentrated in eastern Kentucky's coal counties during the 1880s and 1890s as mining operations drew extended family networks into the same hollows. The relative isolation of Appalachian Kentucky through the early twentieth century meant these founding surnames compounded locally rather than diluting through large-scale immigration from southern or eastern Europe.

Did you know? Mattingly is one of Kentucky's clearest signature surnames because it points to the old Catholic settlement belt around Nelson, Washington, and Marion counties. Slone, Caudill, Combs, and Mullins tell a different Kentucky story: eastern Appalachian family networks that stayed rooted in the same mountain counties for generations.

Top 20 Most Common Last Names in Kentucky

Showing all 20 surnames

#1
Johnson english
33,998
1 in 132
From the Middle English patronymic meaning 'son of John,' itself derived from the Hebrew Yohanan, meaning 'God is gracious.' Johnson became one of the most common surnames carried through the Cumberland Gap by Scots-Irish settlers in the 1770s and 1780s, and it remains the single most frequent surname in Kentucky today.
#2
Jones welsh
30,292
1 in 148
A Welsh patronymic meaning 'son of John,' derived from the Welsh given name Ieuan or Siôn. Welsh and border-English families bearing the Jones surname were among the earliest settlers in central and eastern Kentucky, and the name appears prominently in land grant records from Fayette and Madison counties dating to the 1780s.
#3
Brown english
28,969
1 in 155
From Old English brun, referring to a person with brown hair, complexion, or clothing. Brown arrived in Kentucky primarily through Virginia and North Carolina settler families who entered the state along the Wilderness Road in the late eighteenth century.
#4
Williams welsh
24,612
1 in 182
A patronymic meaning 'son of William,' from the Norman given name Willahelm, meaning 'will helmet' or resolute protector. Williams spread widely through Kentucky's Bluegrass counties in the early 1800s, carried by Welsh-descended families migrating from Virginia and the Carolinas.
#5
Miller english
24,456
1 in 183
From Middle English milnere or millere, denoting a person who operated a grain mill. Gristmills were essential infrastructure in early Kentucky settlements, and families bearing the Miller surname appear in county records across the Bluegrass and Pennyrile regions from the earliest decades of statehood in the 1790s.
#6
Wilson english
20,778
1 in 216
A patronymic meaning 'son of Will,' a short form of William, from the Norman Willahelm. Wilson was common among the Scots-Irish settlers who entered Kentucky through the Cumberland Gap and established farms in Lincoln and Garrard counties during the 1780s and 1790s.
#7
Davis welsh
20,446
1 in 219
From the Welsh and English patronymic meaning 'son of David,' derived from the Hebrew Dawid, meaning beloved. Davis-bearing families were among the early settlers of the Green River country in south-central Kentucky, and the name appears consistently in Butler and Warren county land records from the early 1800s.
#8
Hall english
19,540
1 in 230
From Old English heall, referring to someone who lived at or worked in a large hall or manor house. Hall is significantly overrepresented in Kentucky relative to the national average, concentrated in Letcher, Pike, and Harlan counties in the eastern coalfields, where English settler families established deep generational roots beginning in the early nineteenth century.
#9
Moore english
17,382
1 in 258
From Old English mor, meaning an open expanse of uncultivated upland or boggy ground. Moore-bearing families entered Kentucky primarily from Virginia and the Carolinas, and the name appears in early deed records across the Bluegrass region, particularly in Bourbon and Scott counties, from the 1790s onward.
#10
Taylor english
17,293
1 in 259
From the Old French tailleur, meaning a cutter of cloth, denoting a tailor by trade. Taylor is one of the most common occupational surnames in Kentucky, carried into the state by English settler families and appearing in early court records across Mercer, Nelson, and Washington counties in the late 1700s.
#11
Thompson english
15,959
1 in 281
A patronymic meaning 'son of Thomas,' from the Aramaic given name Toma, meaning twin. Thompson was common among Scots-Irish families who settled the eastern Kentucky mountains and the Licking River valley in the early nineteenth century, and it remains notably concentrated in that region today.
#12
Clark english
15,588
1 in 288
From Old English clerc or cleric, originally denoting a clergyman or a literate person who kept records. Clark is overrepresented in Kentucky relative to the national average, and the name gained particular prominence in the state through the legacy of explorer George Rogers Clark, whose family settled in Jefferson County in the 1780s.
#13
Thomas welsh
14,749
1 in 304
From the Aramaic given name Toma, meaning twin, adopted widely in Wales and England after the apostle Thomas. Welsh-descended families bearing Thomas as a surname were among the settlers of the Bluegrass counties in the late eighteenth century, and the name appears in early Fayette and Jessamine county records.
#14
Martin english
14,563
1 in 308
From the Latin given name Martinus, derived from Mars, the Roman god of war. Martin arrived in Kentucky primarily through English and Scots-Irish settler families from Virginia, and it appears in land grant records across the central Bluegrass region from the 1780s onward.
#15
Adams english
14,472
1 in 310
A patronymic meaning 'son of Adam,' from the Hebrew adam, meaning man or earth. Adams is overrepresented in Kentucky compared to its national rank, appearing frequently in eastern Appalachian counties where English settler families established farms in the early 1800s and the name compounded through large multi-generational households.
#16
Baker english
13,644
1 in 329
From Old English baecere, denoting a person who baked bread professionally. Baker is more common in Kentucky than its national rank would suggest, and the name appears in early records across the central and western Bluegrass, carried by English settler families who moved into the state from Virginia and Maryland in the late eighteenth century.
#17
Allen english
13,145
1 in 341
From the Old Breton given name Alan, of uncertain meaning, possibly related to a word for rock or harmony. Allen-bearing families settled across the Pennyrile and western coalfield regions of Kentucky in the early 1800s, and the name appears in deed records from Christian and Hopkins counties from that period.
#18
Howard english
12,630
1 in 355
From Old English or Old Norse elements meaning hog warden or high guardian, originally an occupational term. Howard is strikingly overrepresented in Kentucky, ranking 18th in the state but only 70th nationally. The name clusters in eastern Kentucky's mountain counties, where Howard-bearing families arrived in the early 1800s and remained through the coal era.
#19
Jackson english
12,604
1 in 356
A patronymic meaning 'son of Jack,' a medieval diminutive of John, from the Hebrew Yohanan. Jackson spread widely across Kentucky in the early nineteenth century, partly through the cultural influence of Andrew Jackson's popularity in the region, and the name appears in county records across the Pennyrile and Green River districts.
#20
White english
12,454
1 in 360
From Old English hwit, describing a person with pale hair or complexion. White arrived in Kentucky with English and Scots-Irish settler families from Virginia and the Carolinas, appearing in early land records across Bourbon, Clark, and Montgomery counties from the 1790s onward.

Local Insight

Uniquely Kentucky

These family names rank far higher in Kentucky than nationally — a direct fingerprint of the state's specific immigration waves.

Kentucky Historical Society english

Ranked #0 in Kentucky and not reliably ranked nationally in this dataset.

#1 Surname
Johnson
People named #1
33,998
1 in every
132 residents
Top origin
English
State population
4,505,836
Census year
2010

Related States

Alabama state flag
Alabama
Arkansas state flag
Arkansas
Delaware state flag
Delaware
Oklahoma state flag
Oklahoma
North Carolina state flag
North Carolina
View all states
Explore More
Data
State Rankings

Compare all 50 states by population, land area, statehood date, and more.

View Rankings
Curated
Collections

Themed lists - states sharing the same bird, oldest symbols, flags with bears, and more.

Browse Collections
Compare
Compare States

Side-by-side comparison of population, area, income, taxes, climate, and more.

Compare Now
Genealogy
Last Names by State

Top 20 most common surnames per state - with origins, meanings, and heritage context. Is yours on the list?

Explore Last Names

You Might Also Like