Penny Surname

16,056th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 34,716 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
Grenada

Penny Surname Definition:

Johannes Peny was witness in Elgin in 1343 (REM., p. 290), Mr. John Peny, a Scottish clerk, had a safe conduct in England, 1362 (Rot. Scot., I, p. 867b), and a later John Peny had a grant of the fulling mill of Ballernache in Perthshire in 1375 (RMS.

Read More About This Surname

Penny Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States13,1931:27,4743,433
England7,6501:7,2831,062
Australia4,2601:6,337924
Canada3,2061:11,4931,718
South Africa9611:56,3767,153
New Zealand9081:4,987805
Papua New Guinea8211:9,931827
Scotland7071:7,5731,150
Wales5421:5,709639
Indonesia3451:383,33132,711
Ireland1951:24,1482,322
France1921:345,95252,007
Zimbabwe1731:89,23812,859
Nigeria1701:1,042,01643,672
Northern Ireland1411:13,0851,887
Grenada1021:1,064200
Belgium911:126,33718,388
Jamaica821:34,9992,417
Peru811:392,39712,711
Trinidad and Tobago791:17,2662,111
China731:18,730,4321,064
Singapore731:75,4483,146
Brazil631:3,398,00596,455
Germany411:1,963,548108,338
Spain401:1,168,80140,601
United Arab Emirates401:229,05715,464
Malaysia381:776,16436,096
Thailand351:2,018,238239,646
Portugal281:372,08012,265
Philippines261:3,893,778155,597
Saint Kitts and Nevis221:2,509370
Switzerland221:373,31428,226
Uruguay211:163,41713,939
Colombia201:2,388,70413,197
Israel201:427,88233,464
Liberia201:220,42714,169
Solomon Islands201:29,0015,821
Botswana171:128,64318,229
Denmark151:376,31425,792
Qatar121:196,50026,891
Russia121:12,010,255361,204
India101:76,706,538639,611
Jersey101:9,9202,003
Mexico101:12,412,62043,480
Norway101:514,22941,629
Ghana91:3,002,29911,581
Netherlands91:1,876,35385,467
Italy61:10,192,781121,657
Marshall Islands61:8,6371,214
Greece51:2,215,95891,893
Kenya51:9,235,98055,978
Sweden51:1,969,351134,077
Belarus41:2,375,265105,497
Dominican Republic41:2,608,23320,941
Afghanistan31:10,717,72835,605
Czechia31:3,544,490144,714
Hong Kong31:2,445,1619,595
Taiwan31:7,814,91541,694
Uganda31:13,013,093160,157
Argentina21:21,371,707253,176
Austria21:4,257,71899,224
Barbados21:143,7241,981
Finland21:2,748,35172,663
Hungary21:4,908,13864,617
Japan21:63,922,14662,827
Pakistan21:89,321,942157,560
Venezuela21:15,102,03869,873
Akrotiri and Dhekelia11:7,858154
Bahamas11:391,7512,737
Benin11:10,335,602103,742
Bhutan11:616,0391,715
Bolivia11:10,616,43417,077
Bosnia and Herzegovina11:3,536,40219,532
British Virgin Islands11:31,5941,029
Cameroon11:20,769,068227,406
Chile11:17,616,47493,597
Congo11:4,989,09634,171
Egypt11:91,935,754132,737
Georgia11:3,745,54547,852
Gibraltar11:33,9541,660
Greenland11:56,3791,133
Guam11:160,1214,893
Iceland11:380,09011,096
Iran11:76,782,524277,718
Kazakhstan11:17,682,496204,010
Lesotho11:2,032,55823,402
Luxembourg11:580,54215,155
Mauritius11:1,293,41716,552
Monaco11:37,0664,748
Montenegro11:639,5659,092
Montserrat11:4,947471
Namibia11:2,409,40119,676
Poland11:38,008,749231,653
Saudi Arabia11:30,855,81763,028
Slovakia11:5,336,450140,422
Sudan11:37,510,19514,259
Tanzania11:52,941,613123,716
Turkey11:77,821,422191,047
United States Virgin Islands11:110,3756,934
Uzbekistan11:30,929,14267,786
Vietnam11:92,646,0548,382
Zambia11:15,849,92253,989
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland1351:32,8143,199
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England4,5201:5,393820
Scotland5451:6,868976
Wales961:16,338975
Jersey101:5,188903
Guernsey81:4,082713
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States3,2781:15,3201,966

The alternate forms: Pëññÿ (1) are calculated separately.

Penny (242,802) may also be a first name.

Penny Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

Johannes Peny was witness in Elgin in 1343 (REM., p. 290), Mr. John Peny, a Scottish clerk, had a safe conduct in England, 1362 (Rot. Scot., I, p. 867b), and a later John Peny had a grant of the fulling mill of Ballernache in Perthshire in 1375 (RMS., I, 577). George Penny was a writer in Edinbergh in 1433 (RED., I, 59), Alexander Penny held land in Glasgow in 1487 (LCD., p. 256), and John Penny was prior of the order of Preachers in Aberdeen in 1486-7 (REA., II, p. 299; LCD., p. 201) William Peny held a croft in the sheriffdom of Linlithgow in 1500 (Neubotle, p. 281), and in 1529 "Desse Penne oblissis hir neuer to by buttir nor cheise .. to regrait agane" in Edinburgh (MCM., II,p. 85). Isobel Pennie is recorded in Chirnsyde in 1683 (Lauder), and James Penny from Fyvie was killed in the first Great War (Turriff). Penney 1470.

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

(French) the common French Peny, also Peney, Penné, a deriv. from Pène, Penne: v. Penn (French) (English) a nickname from the coin [Middle English peny, peni, Old English peni(n)g] Alexander Peny.—Hundred Rolls Robert Peni.—do.

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

“Chief” in Welsh (Pen). Also Nickname for Benjamin in Old English.

South African Surnames (1965) by Eric Rosenthal

(English, Scottish, French) Dweller at the sign of the feather; descendant of Penny.

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

Probably local. Many places in Scotland are compounded with this word (whatever it may mean), as Pennycross, Pennycuick, Pennygown, Pennimuir, &c.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

The top of a mountain or hill. A mountain in Spain is called by the inhabitants "La Penna de los Enamorados,"or the Lover's Rock. The word has the same meaning as the English pinnacle.

An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names (1857) by William Arthur

This name has been classed with Benn, Benney, Binney, Old German Benno, Benni, Binne, Modern German Behn, Benne, Bihn. It is rather from the W. pen, head, chief, end. Hence the names Fippeny, Fourapenny (found Fourapeni), Godspenny, Hankpenny, Manypenny, Moneypenny, Pennycook, Pennycuick, Pennymaker, Pennyman (anciently Pennaman and Peniman), Pennymore, Smalpenny, Tempany, Tenpenny, Thickpenny, Ticklepenny, Turnpenny, Whirlpenny (in H.R. Whirlepeni), Wilderspin, Wimpenny, Winpenny (white). See also Allpenny, Halfpenny, Hapenny, Twopenny, Craven, Inkpen, Pennyfather, Pennyfeather.

Ludus Patronymicus (1868) by Richard Stephen Charnock

Serlo Penné, Normandy 1180-95 (Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae); John le Penny was of Bayeux, t. Henry V. (Mem. Soc. Ant. Norm. v. 258); John Pinne, Engl. c. 1198 (Rotuli Curiae Regis); Alexander, Elyas Peny, c. 1272 (Rotuli Hundredorum).

The Norman People (1874)

From the Old Norse, Peini; nickname from the Danish, Peine; from the Flemish, Penet; from the Dutch, Pen, Penha; from the French, Peigné, Penna; a personal name.$

British Family Names: Their Origin and Meaning (1903) by Henry Barber

In the reign of Anne, John Penny, Esq., lived at Charlton Musgrove, and at the same time a burgess of Glastonbury bore this name (P.).

Homes of Family Names in Great Britain (1890) by Henry Brougham Guppy

Penny Last Name Facts

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

The last name Penny (Arabic: بنس, Marathi: पेनी, Tibetan: པད་ནས་) is found most in The United States. It can be rendered as: Pëññÿ. Click here for other potential spellings of this surname.

How Common Is The Last Name Penny? popularity and diffusion

The surname is the 16,056th most commonly occurring last name in the world, held by approximately 1 in 209,919 people. This surname occurs mostly in The Americas, where 43 percent of Penny live; 42 percent live in North America and 41 percent live in Anglo-North America. Penny is also the 4,324th most commonly held first name globally It is held by 242,802 people.

Penny is most frequent in The United States, where it is borne by 13,193 people, or 1 in 27,474. In The United States it is most frequent in: North Carolina, where 11 percent reside, California, where 8 percent reside and Florida, where 6 percent reside. Aside from The United States this surname exists in 101 countries. It is also common in England, where 22 percent reside and Australia, where 12 percent reside.

Penny Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The incidence of Penny has changed over time. In The United States the number of people who held the Penny last name rose 402 percent between 1880 and 2014; in England it rose 169 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Scotland it rose 130 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Wales it rose 565 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Ireland it rose 144 percent between 1901 and 2014.

Penny Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those bearing the Penny last name is primarily Presbyterian (37%) in Ireland and Christian (100%) in Nigeria.

In The United States those bearing the Penny last name are 5.65% more likely to be registered Republicans than the national average, with 52.42% registered with the political party.

The amount Penny earn in different countries varies greatly. In Norway they earn 0.11% more than the national average, earning 346,477 kr per year; in Peru they earn 332.89% more than the national average, earning S/. 83,916 per year; in South Africa they earn 17.03% more than the national average, earning R 278,112 per year; in Colombia they earn 47.78% less than the national average, earning $11,855,100 COP per year; in United States they earn 3.78% less than the national average, earning $41,518 USD per year and in Canada they earn 1.24% less than the national average, earning $49,067 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Penney9122,413/
Pennay91380/
Pennyy917/
Pienny914/
Penniy911/
Peenny910/
Penneys8339/
Pennaya8317/
Paennoy835/
Pengnoy832/
Penniey831/
Penna8026,044/
Penne801,925/
Penni80401/
Pinny80273/
Penné8056/
Pennè8022/
Pemny800/
Pny7518/
Penner7332,337/
Pinney736,804/
Pennie732,193/
Pennes73276/
Pienne73240/
Penneh73224/
Pennet73213/
Pinnoy73182/
Pennis7344/
Pennea7341/
Pinnay7324/
Pengni7323/
Pennio7311/
Penniz737/
Pienna735/
Pinniy735/
Pennaa735/
Pennoi734/
Pennee733/
Pengne732/
Penneu732/
Peenna732/
Pfenni731/
Pennip731/
Pennai731/
Phnney731/
Pennni731/
Pëññÿ731/
Puenne731/
Pfenne730/
Pennei730/
Pennez730/
Paennoi671,228/
Pennett67319/
Pengnoi6791/
Pengnet6774/
Penness6732/
Pnay6721/
Pennoit6720/
Pnyh6715/
Pfenner678/
D'Penna677/
Pnyo676/
Pnna676/
Pennish675/
Phny673/
Pennich673/
Pnoy672/
Pengnie672/
Pennist672/
Pinngoy672/
Pennitt671/
Pennets671/
Pennaia671/
Pnne671/
Pfennes671/
Pney671/
Pennieh671/
Pennois671/
Poennai671/
Bpny671/
Pengnit671/
Pehenyi671/
Ppny671/
Pnyy671/
Piennie670/

Penny Name Transliterations

TransliterationICU LatinPercentage of Incidence
Penny in the Tibetan language
པད་ནས་péné-
Penny in the Marathi language
पेनीpeni-
Penny in the Arabic language
بنسbns-

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Penny Reference & Research

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

Penny 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 Penny
  • 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