Surname Distribution Maps

Tracing Immigrant Origins   United States    Emigration and Immigration    Surname Distribution Maps   Sometimes it is possible to guess where a surname originated through surname distribution maps. These maps graphically display locations where surnames occurred at different periods in time. This strategy provides genealogists with a starting point for research in the birth country, when that information cannot be discovered through sources recorded in the new country of settlement. It works particularly well for less-common surnames and among families that have stayed in the same European locations for centuries.