Forsyth Surname

15,078th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 36,943 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
Norfolk Island

Forsyth Surname Definition:

This name appears to be of twofold origin. (1) Local, from some place of the name. William de Fersith, bailie of Edinbergh, 1365, may be William of Forsythe, servant of Aleyn of Bollone of Edinburgh, merchant of Scodand, 1394 (Bain, IV, 460).

Read More About This Surname

Forsyth Surname Distribution Map

By incidenceBy frequencyBy rank
Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ARank (high to low)Rank (low to high)
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States11,9231:30,4003,785
England6,2731:8,8821,286
Australia5,5571:4,858705
Scotland5,2361:1,023158
Canada4,7071:7,8281,150
New Zealand1,2851:3,524548
South Africa6331:85,58910,529
Ireland2511:18,7611,988
Wales2021:15,3191,670
Venezuela771:392,2618,163
Grenada741:1,467267
Northern Ireland721:25,6262,839
Thailand521:1,358,430190,094
France441:1,509,607143,950
Peru411:775,22317,111
Germany411:1,963,548108,338
Singapore391:141,2236,278
Sweden361:273,52118,976
Spain301:1,558,40147,033
United Arab Emirates301:305,40920,323
Guernsey291:2,222539
Switzerland281:293,31823,433
Isle of Man221:3,901846
Mexico171:7,301,54134,591
Guam161:10,0081,526
Denmark161:352,79524,706
Malaysia151:1,966,28278,777
Brazil121:17,839,528311,080
Qatar121:196,50026,891
Zimbabwe111:1,403,47676,064
Jamaica111:260,9046,695
Netherlands101:1,688,71881,846
Hong Kong91:815,0543,802
Iceland91:42,2322,922
Argentina91:4,749,268159,873
Turks and Caicos Islands81:4,291379
Philippines81:12,654,778228,986
Norfolk Island61:38264
Indonesia51:26,449,839597,308
Trinidad and Tobago51:272,79511,064
Nigeria51:35,428,552388,973
Belgium51:2,299,329106,824
Curaçao41:39,312638
Botswana41:546,73222,624
Liberia41:1,102,13437,930
Japan41:31,961,07353,820
China31:455,773,85521,925
Norway31:1,714,09579,528
Italy31:20,385,563143,117
Cook Islands31:6,0601,122
Jersey31:33,0674,675
Croatia21:2,114,30285,143
Taiwan21:11,722,37363,559
Austria21:4,257,71899,224
Pakistan21:89,321,942157,560
Hungary11:9,816,27773,288
Turkey11:77,821,422191,047
Greece11:11,079,790145,225
Uganda11:39,039,279258,887
Ethiopia11:97,546,26229,669
Czechia11:10,633,469206,023
Dominican Republic11:10,432,93236,508
Uzbekistan11:30,929,14267,786
El Salvador11:6,343,8888,415
Egypt11:91,935,754132,737
Yemen11:26,425,29455,147
Ecuador11:15,905,84650,210
Barbados11:287,4482,772
Bahamas11:391,7512,737
Rwanda11:11,364,9785,947
Chile11:17,616,47493,597
Luxembourg11:580,54215,155
Oman11:3,687,97114,390
Panama11:3,912,25817,195
Papua New Guinea11:8,153,717181,784
Kenya11:46,179,900103,372
Kazakhstan11:17,682,496204,010
Puerto Rico11:3,550,1399,109
Russia11:144,123,056881,408
Guyana11:762,22114,420
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines11:112,6591,704
Saudi Arabia11:30,855,81763,028
Cayman Islands11:63,8932,384
Cambodia11:15,487,14614,824
Swaziland11:1,298,1991,718
India11:767,065,3821,851,717
New Caledonia11:276,22310,363
Tanzania11:52,941,613123,716
Show All Nations
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland2291:19,3442,310
Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ARank (high to low)Rank (low to high)
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Scotland4,7031:796122
England1,7041:14,3052,138
Wales181:87,1343,963
Isle of Man91:6,030597
Jersey11:51,8823,898
Guernsey11:32,6562,283
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States3,0791:16,3102,072

Forsyth (81) may also be a first name.

Forsyth Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This name appears to be of twofold origin. (1) Local, from some place of the name. William de Fersith, bailie of Edinbergh, 1365, may be William of Forsythe, servant of Aleyn of Bollone of Edinburgh, merchant of Scodand, 1394 (Bain, IV, 460). William de Fersith, one of an inquest in Edinbergh, 1402, may be William Fersith (without 'de'), bergess of Edinbergh, 1423 (Egidii, p. 38, 45). Thomas of Forsythe in Edinburgh, 1439 (CDE., 26). Robert of Forsythe had a safe conduct in England, 1424 (Bain, IV, 970), and another Robert de Forsith was charter witness at Dunottyr, 1426. Thomas de Forsyth who witnessed a precept by Robert dominus de Lyle, 1452 (RMP., p. 250), may be Thomas de Forsith, canon and prebendary of Glasgow, who endowed the altar of Corpus Christi in Glasgow, 1487 (REG., 446,460). (2) From the old Gaelic personal name Feersithe, meaning 'man of peace.' Fersithi Mag Uibne, bishop of the two Breifne, died 1464 (AU.). Osbert filius Forsyth had charter of a hundred shilling land in the tenement of Salakhill (now Sauchie), sheriffdom of Stirling, from Robert I c. 1308 (RMS., I, App. I, 40). Robert II made a grant out of the lands of Polmaise-Marischal to Fersith or Forsyth, clerk, who in 1364 rendered to Exchequer the accounts of custumars of Stirling (Stodart, II, p. 297; Cambus., 43). Fersyth, claviger, mentioned in 1364; Fersith, constable of Stirling Castle, 1368 (Stodart, II, p. 297); and Fersy, son of James, in Inverness, 1405 (Macbain). Robert Fersith was burgess of Stirling, 1420 (RAA., II, 55), and as Robert Fersithsoun he rendered to Exchequer the accounts of the bailies of the same town in 1418 (ER., IV, p. 304). Forsythe Toller had the petty customs of Dumbarton, 1428 (ER., IV, p. 462), James Fersith (Forsithe or Forsithsoun) is mentioned in 1446 as servant of the king (ER., V, p. 235), and Forsith Sutor was burgess of Aberdeen, 1451 (NSCM., I, p. 12). Robert faresyth witnessed a charter of Sowlis lands, 1461 (LSC., p. 151); David Forsytht, scutifer, Glasgow, 1471 (REG., 395); William Forsytht, witness in Brechin, 1497 (REB., II, 140); and Thomas Forsitht admitted burgess of Aberdeen, 1498 (NSCM., I, p. 40). Thomas Foresyth was tenant in lands in Ardmanoch, 1504 (ER., XII, p. 650); another Thomas Forsith was presbyter of Glasgow diocese, 1525 (REG., 497); Wille Forsyicht, dempster, Stirling, 1525 (SBR., p. 24); and William Forsith, vicar of Moneky, 1512 (REB., II, 181). By Gaelic speakers the name is sometimes pronounced 'Forsy' (for-sigh). Forseyth 1704, Forsitht 1509, Forsycht 1491.

— The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

(Celtic) belonging to Forsyth, which seems to have been in Stirlingshire [for the first element v. under Fordyce; the second is doubtful]

— Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

“Man of Peace” in Gaelic (Fearsithe).

— South African Surnames (1965) by Eric Rosenthal

(Scottish) One who came from Forsyth, in Scotland; descendant of Fearsithe (man of peace).

— Dictionary of American Family Names (1956) by Elsdon Coles Smith

Probably from Forcett (whence also Fawcett) a township in the wapentake of Gillingwest, N.R of Yorkshire.

— Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower
DNA test information
Display Statistics on:

Forsyth Demographics

Average Male Forsyth Height

177.91 cm

Average male height (US):
175.3 cm
Sample size: 265 (2014)

Average Female Forsyth Height

164.24 cm

Average female height (US):
161.5 cm
Sample size: 37 (2014)

Sample is predominantly from Anglosphere countries

View the tallest/shortest surnames in the world

Forsyth Last Name Facts

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

Forsyth occurs in The United States more than any other country/territory. It may also appear as a variant:. For other potential spellings of Forsyth click here.

How Common Is The Last Name Forsyth? popularity and diffusion

It is the 15,078th most widely held family name internationally. It is borne by around 1 in 197,265 people. The last name is predominantly found in The Americas, where 46 percent of Forsyth live; 45 percent live in North America and 45 percent live in Anglo-North America. It is also the 1,068,082nd most frequent forename on earth. It is borne by 81 people.

It is most frequent in The United States, where it is carried by 11,923 people, or 1 in 30,400. In The United States Forsyth is primarily concentrated in: California, where 11 percent are found, Texas, where 7 percent are found and Georgia, where 6 percent are found. Outside of The United States this last name occurs in 87 countries. It also occurs in England, where 17 percent are found and Australia, where 15 percent are found.

Forsyth Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The incidence of Forsyth has changed over time. In The United States the number of people who held the Forsyth last name grew 387 percent between 1880 and 2014; in England it grew 368 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Scotland it grew 111 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Ireland it grew 110 percent between 1901 and 2014 and in Wales it grew 1,122 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Forsyth Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those holding the Forsyth surname is predominantly Anglican (44%) in Ireland.

In The United States those bearing the Forsyth surname are 13.7% more likely to be registered with the Republican Party than The US average, with 60.47% registered with the political party.

The amount Forsyth earn in different countries varies greatly. In Peru they earn 402.75% more than the national average, earning S/. 97,459 per year; in South Africa they earn 95.43% more than the national average, earning R 464,412 per year; in United States they earn 6.66% more than the national average, earning $46,022 USD per year and in Canada they earn 1.08% less than the national average, earning $49,145 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ASimilarity (high to low)Similarity (low to high)Prevalent jurisdiction A-ZPrevalent jurisdiction Z-A
SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Forsythe9323,236/
Forsayth9317/
Fforsyth935/
Forseyth933/
Foursyth931/
Forsyteh931/
Forsytch931/
Forshyth930/
Forrsyth930/
Forsyths930/
Forsyt921/
Forsaythe884/
Forsysthe882/
Forshythe881/
Forseythe881/
Foorsythe881/
Forsyhthe881/
Foursythe880/
Forseth861,980/
Forsayt8654/
Forsyte8638/
Forsith8637/
Forsyht867/
Farsyth860/
Forcyth860/
Forsythová822/
Fourseythe820/
Forsaith80153/
Forshayt802/
Forsyhte802/
Farsythe802/
Forsaytt801/
Forsoith800/
Forsieth800/
Forsithe800/
Forcyths800/
Forcythe800/
Forset7722/
Forsit773/
Forshieth750/
Forsett7181/
Vorseth7173/
Farseth7125/
Forsits7116/
Forshed7113/
Forsait7111/
Forgeth712/
Forsiht711/
Forgest711/
Forcith711/
Forsite710/
Forceth710/
Forsest710/
Forsette6719/
Forshaid6712/
Forsheit6711/
Forshait675/
Forsøget671/
Forsheed671/
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Forsyth Reference & Research

Forsythe DNA Website - A web page dedicated to the genetic research of those who bear the surname and its variants.

Forsythe FamilyTree DNA Project - A description of a group researching the paternal lines of men who bear the surname with the help of DNA analysis.

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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 Forsyth
  • 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