Smith

♂ Boy

Pronounced SMITH /ˈsmɪθ/Medium

Meaning: from the English occupational surname meaning 'metalworker' or 'blacksmith', from Old English 'smið'Medium

In 30 seconds: Smith is an English occupational surname meaning 'metalworker' or 'blacksmith', from the Old English word 'smiD'.

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Origin MediumEnglish

Meaningfrom the English occupational surname meaning 'metalworker' or 'blacksmith', from Old English 'smið'

U.S. rank (2025)#1483 ↗ Rising

2025 U.S. births120 boys (0.01% of U.S. boys)

Peak year2016

Total births (all-time)≈ 5,474

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Smith began as an occupational surname for someone who worked metal, the village smith who forged tools, horseshoes, and blades. Its root is the Old English 'smiD', and because nearly every settlement needed a metalworker, the name became the most common surname across the English-speaking world. As a first name it carries that plainspoken, trade-rooted history.

The name has a blunt, single-syllable strength to it, the sound of the workshop it describes. Its use as a given name is more recent and leans on the surname's everyday familiarity rather than any softer meaning.

Did you know? Smith likely reached first-name use through a surname or place-name route, which gives it that modern borrowed-from-history feel.

Overall data confidence 78%

Behind the Name - Smith — etymology, usage, pronunciation, and related formsU.S. Social Security Administration — 2024 popularity rank and count supplied in the batch input CSV

Variations

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Nicknames

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Famous Bearers

★Smith Wigglesworth (1859-1947)
British Pentecostal evangelist and preacher
★Smith Hart (1948-2017)
Canadian professional wrestler of the Hart family

If you like Smith…

Mason— Also an English occupational surname turned first name, naming a stone-working trade.

Cooper— Another trade-based English surname now used as a given name, for a barrel-maker.

Forrest— Like Smith, an English surname used as a first name, plainspoken and one-word.

Wade— A short, single-syllable English name with the same understated, surname-rooted feel.

Tanner— An English occupational surname for a leather trade, parallel to Smith's metalworking root.

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Smith mean?

Smith is usually explained as meaning 'metal worker, blacksmith' and is most often linked with English tradition.

How do you pronounce Smith?

It's commonly said SMITH /ˈsmɪθ/.

Is Smith a boy or girl name?

In this batch and in recent U.S. usage data, Smith is used as a boy name.

How popular is Smith?

In 2024, Smith ranked #1584 in the U.S. for boys, with 109 births recorded.