Bellwether Surname

7,593,402nd
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 6 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
Australia

Bellwether Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the bellwether.' A very early instance of the use of this word will be found in the custumal of the manor of Brithwolton, Berkshire (Camden Soc.), where the keeper of the wethers was entitled, among his perquisites, to the belwether's fleece (belwertheresfles).

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Bellwether Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States51:72,491,7871,102,614
Australia11:26,995,701270,794

Bellwether Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the bellwether.' A very early instance of the use of this word will be found in the custumal of the manor of Brithwolton, Berkshire (Camden Soc.), where the keeper of the wethers was entitled, among his perquisites, to the belwether's fleece (belwertheresfles). The date is 1284-5.' (J. H. Round in Notes and Queries, Feb. 19, 1887.)

John Bellewether. Rotuli Curiae Regis.

Stephen de le Belwether. Rotuli Curiae Regis.

A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

Bellwether Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Bellwether Come From? nationality or country of origin

Bellwether is found in The United States more than any other country or territory. It may be found in the variant forms:. Click here for further possible spellings of this surname.

How Common Is The Last Name Bellwether? popularity and diffusion

The surname is the 7,593,402nd most commonly used last name worldwide, borne by approximately 1 in 1,214,590,986 people. This last name occurs mostly in The Americas, where 83 percent of Bellwether live; 83 percent live in North America and 83 percent live in Anglo-North America.

The surname is most widespread in The United States, where it is held by 5 people, or 1 in 72,491,787. In The United States it is primarily found in: California, where 40 percent reside, Florida, where 20 percent reside and Michigan, where 20 percent reside. Other than The United States this last name is found in one country. It also occurs in Australia, where 17 percent reside.

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Bellwether
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis