How common is the surname South?

11,178 people in the United States had the surname South in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 27,621 Americans. It ranked 3,231st of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named South?

James South, British astronomer (1785-1867), followed by Mike South.

Where is the surname South most common?

Wikidata records people named South in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Is the surname South getting more or less common?

More common. 10,839 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 11,178 in 2010, up 3.1%.

The surname South

A surname, carried by 11,178 people in the United States.

1 syllable Soundex S300

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). South is more common than 98% of them.

Origin

By proprialization from south.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 11,178 people named South in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 27,621 Americans. That is up 3.1% since 2000, when the Census counted 10,839.

#3,231

rank among US surnames

11,178

people in 2010

3.8

per 100,000 Americans

+3.1%

change since 2000 (was #3,066)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#3,222	Sage	11,207	27,549
#3,223	Brockman	11,204	27,557
#3,224	Nino	11,202	27,562
#3,225	Parent	11,193	27,584
#3,226	Lenz	11,191	27,589
#3,227	Keck	11,186	27,601
#3,228	Houghton	11,184	27,606

Who is named South

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

88% of people named South identified as white (not Hispanic), 6.0% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.6% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 88%
Black (not Hispanic) 6.0%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.6%
Two or more races 1.9%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Souths

3 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

James South
British astronomer (1785-1867)
Mike South
American pornographic actor, director, blogger and pornography gossip columnist, born 1957
Eddie South
American musician (1904–1962)

Notable Souths come mostly from the United States (2) and the United Kingdom (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like South

Soto

South has the Soundex code S300, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code S300.

Questions

Where does the surname South come from?: By proprialization from south.
How common is the surname South?: 11,178 people in the United States had the surname South in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 27,621 Americans. It ranked 3,231st of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname South?: In the 2010 Census, 88% of people named South identified as white (not Hispanic), and 6.0% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named South?: James South, British astronomer (1785-1867), followed by Mike South.
Where is the surname South most common?: Wikidata records people named South in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Is the surname South getting more or less common?: More common. 10,839 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 11,178 in 2010, up 3.1%.