When doing your family research, do you stumble across the last name Smith in your area frequently? According to listings in the white pages, Smith is one of the most common last names in almost every region of the United States.

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Most Common Surname by State State Last Name Alabama Smith Williams Johnson Alaska Smith Johnson Williams Arizona Smith Johnson Garcia Arkansas Smith Williams Johnson California Garcia Hernandez Lopez Colorado Smith Johnson Martinez Connecticut Smith Johnson Brown Delaware Smith Johnson Brown Florida Smith Williams Johnson Georgia Smith Williams Johnson Hawaii Lee Wong Kim Idaho Smith Johnson Anderson Illinois Smith Johnson Williams Indiana Smith Miller Johnson Iowa Smith Williams Johnson Kansas Smith Johnson Miller Kentucky Smith Johnson Jones Louisiana Williams Smith Johnson Maine Smith Brown Johnson Maryland Smith Johnson Jones Massachusetts Smith Johnson Sullivan Michigan Smith Johnson Williams Minnesota Johnson Anderson Nelson Mississippi Smith Williams Johnson Missouri Smith Johnson Williams Montana Smith Johnson Anderson Nebraska Johnson Smith Miller Nevada Smith Johnson Garcia New Hampshire Smith Brown Johnson New Jersey Smith Williams Johnson New Mexico Martinez Garcia Chavez New York Smith Williams Brown North Carolina Smith Williams Johnson North Dakota Johnson Anderson Olson Ohio Smith Miller Johnson Oklahoma Smith Johnson Williams Oregon Smith Johnson Miller Pennsylvania Smith Miller Williams Rhode Island Smith Brown Johnson South Carolina Smith Williams Brown South Dakota Johnson Anderson Smith Tennessee Smith Johnson Jones Texas Garcia Smith Martinez Utah Smith Johnson Anderson Vermont Smith Brown Johnson Virginia Smith Johnson Jones Washington Smith Johnson Anderson West Virginia Smith Miller Johnson Wisconsin Johnson Smith Anderson Wyoming Smith Johnson Miller

Smith, along with Johnson, Miller, Jones, Williams, and Anderson make up most of the most common surnames all across the country.

But there are still regional differences. If you are in the Northwest, you are more likely to come across an Anderson than a Brown, which is slightly more common on the East Coast.

Only the Southwestern portion of the country really has a lot of variety. States like Texas, California, New Mexico, and Arizona — where there are large Latino populations — boast a variety of names like Garcia, Hernandez, Martinez, and Chavez.

And then there’s Hawaii, whose three most-common surnames — Lee, Wong and Kim — don’t even appear in the top three anywhere else in the country.

And Massachusetts, with its large Irish population, is the only state that has Sullivan in its top three.

If you are looking to explore more about your own last name, you can search for its meaning and origins at ancestry.com/surnames.

—Angel Cohn