Do You Have One of Michigan’s Most Popular Last Names?
As William Shakespeare once said, a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet. Meaning that whatever your name may be, you'd still be the same person no matter what what your name is, right?
Well, I'm sure if you were named Mike Rotch, or Harry Arms, you'd probably strongly disagree with 'ol Billy Shakespeare and his kind thoughts about names not really mattering.
As a kid, I never met another person with the same last name as me, and it felt a little isolating. Which at the time meant I had no surprise cousins or family in my small hometown, unlike a lot of the kids in my class.
But maybe you're one of those people who had to deal with having someone with the same exact name in their class... If you had one of Michigan's most popular last names, it's very possible.
What are the most popular last names in Michigan?
According to Forebears data from state and national records, here are the ten most popular last names in Michigan, and the number of people who share it:
10. Taylor (28,468)
9. Jackson (28,659)
8. Wilson (30,729)
7. Anderson (31,402)
6. Davis (39,193)
5. Jones (47,263)
4. Miller (49,911)
3. Brown (53,717)
2. Williams (58,026)
And the most popular last name in the state of Michigan is...
1. Johnson
According to data, three percent of Michigan parents pass this last name along, and 73,139 people share it.
How did so many people end up with the last name Johnson?
According to ancestry.com, Johnson is the most popular name in the US, so t makes sense we have so many of them in the mitten state. The first usage of the name was in England in the 1200s and it has grown in popularity since.