The origins of the Smith family name

Do you have a Smith in your family? Did your Scottish Smith emigrate to North Carolina, Canada or
even South Africa? Here are some interesting facts about the origins and meaning of the Smith family
surname.

Interesting facts
The popular and common surname Smith appears in almost every region of Scotland in the 1901
Scottish Census. In fact, there are more Smiths in the Shetlands than anywhere else in Scotland.

I came across an interesting event that I know you will find fascinating. In the 1700s in London,
someone thought it was a good idea to organise an unusual banquet where everyone was a Smith,
including the cooks, waiters and guests. The event did take place and all the money raised went to
less fortunate Smiths. A poem was allegedly written about the banquet by the poet James Smith - let
me know if have found that particular poem.

The name Smith is a popular surname and there are different reasons for its origins including this
fantastic speculation: in the Middle Ages, more blacksmiths were needed because there had been an
increase in the removal and fitting of chastity belts because the Knights wanted to keep their wives
out of mischief while they were away fighting! It is more likely that the smiths were needed to make
armour, swords or other weapons rather than chastity belts.

The meaning and origins of the Smith surname

In archival records, Smith is one of the few surnames that survived before 1066 when the Norman
invasion took place such as Ecceard Smith who is noted in the Annals of Durham in 975 AD. The
meaning of the name Smith as we know it today comes from the Anglo-Saxon ' smitan' which means
to strike or hammer. The first smiths were not only craftsmen who worked in metal, but also
carpenters, wheelwrights and mason and this is one of the reasons why the name is so widespread.
As the trade became more specialised, prefixes were added to the original Smith name to
differentiate between the trades. Derivations include Goldsmith, Locksmith, Shoesmith, Brownsmith
for someone who worked in brass, Greensmith for someone who worked with copper; Whitesmith
who worked with tin, and Naysmith who made knives and nails.

Joseph Smith and others who left a legacy

The Smiths have left us many legacies. Maria Ann Smith was the original creator of the Granny Smith
apple when she cross pollinated different apples. Tom Smith, a confectioner by trade, was the
inventor of the traditional Christmas cracker. Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormon Church, left a
legacy for many family historians around the world. Believing in the importance of family and
encouraging their followers to trace their family history has been a huge asset to genealogists. Their
creation of the International Genealogical Index (IGI) has become a cornerstone of family history
research.

The IGI index had been used when someone recently approached me to look into John Smith who
lived in a small village in the Borders. What was interesting about that John Smith is that they had
emigrated to Canada before 1763. This led me to researching emigration in the 18th century and led
me to find that clearances took place in the Borders before the Highland Clearances. According to
research by Peter Aitchison and Andrew Cassell, it turns out that about 60,000 were forced to leave
the lowlands Scotland between 1700 and 1780 so perhaps John Smith was among them.

Do you have a Smith in your family tree? I would be happy to look into the family for you. Get in
touch or leave a comment below.