Surname Distribution Maps

Tracing Immigrant Origins   United States    Emigration and Immigration    Surname Distribution Maps   Sometimes it is possible to guess where an immigrant 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.