How common is the surname Southern?

7,738 people in the United States had the surname Southern in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 39,900 Americans. It ranked 4,587th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Southern?

Terry Southern, American writer (1924–1995), followed by Taryn Southern.

Where is the surname Southern most common?

Wikidata records people named Southern in the United States and Australia.

How do you pronounce Southern?

Southern is /ˈsʌð.ən/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Southern getting more or less common?

More common. 7,494 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 7,738 in 2010, up 3.3%.

What are other spellings of Southern?

Sotheran, Sothern, Sotheron, Southan, Southerin and Southon.

The surname Southern

A nickname surname, carried by 7,738 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈsʌð.ən/ 2 syllables Soundex S365

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Southern is more common than 97.2% of them.

Origin

English surname, from the adjective southern. Often used as a northern English nickname for someone from the south of the country, or as a Scottish nickname for an Englishman.

Southern is a nickname surname: from a description or nickname of an ancestor.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 7,738 people named Southern in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 39,900 Americans. That is up 3.3% since 2000, when the Census counted 7,494.

#4,587

rank among US surnames

7,738

people in 2010

2.6

per 100,000 Americans

+3.3%

change since 2000 (was #4,381)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#4,578	Lung	7,753	39,823
#4,580	Rohrer	7,750	39,838
#4,581	Poland	7,746	39,859
#4,582	Coronel	7,745	39,864
#4,583	Lavender	7,744	39,869
#4,585	Frazer	7,743	39,874
#4,586	Barela	7,739	39,895

Who is named Southern

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

82% of people named Southern identified as white (not Hispanic), 13% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.2% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 82%
Black (not Hispanic) 13%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.2%
Two or more races 2.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.9%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Southerns

5 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Terry Southern
American writer (1924–1995)
Taryn Southern
American actor-singer, born 1986
Clara Southern
Australian artist (1860-1940)
Eddie Southern
American hurdler and sprinter (1938–2023)
Eve Southern
Actress (1898-1972)

Notable Southerns come mostly from the United States (4) and Australia (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Sotheran
Sothern
Sotheron
Southan
Southerin
Southon
Southorn
Sudran
Sudron
Sutherin

Surnames that sound like Southern

Southern has the Soundex code S365, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code S365.

Questions

Where does the surname Southern come from?: English surname, from the adjective southern. Often used as a northern English nickname for someone from the south of the country, or as a Scottish nickname for an Englishman.
How common is the surname Southern?: 7,738 people in the United States had the surname Southern in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 39,900 Americans. It ranked 4,587th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Southern?: In the 2010 Census, 82% of people named Southern identified as white (not Hispanic), and 13% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Southern?: Terry Southern, American writer (1924–1995), followed by Taryn Southern.
Where is the surname Southern most common?: Wikidata records people named Southern in the United States and Australia.
How do you pronounce Southern?: Southern is /ˈsʌð.ən/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Southern?: Southern is a nickname surname, from a description or nickname of an ancestor.
Is the surname Southern getting more or less common?: More common. 7,494 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 7,738 in 2010, up 3.3%.
What are other spellings of Southern?: Sotheran, Sothern, Sotheron, Southan, Southerin and Southon.