The 10 Most Common Last Names in Bell County and Where They’re From

Whether you call it a last name, surname or family name, we as humans can often trace the history of our families with it. It's the name placed at the end of your given name, and it is part of who you are. That's why in Texas, you'll find a culturally diverse pot of last names ranging from European, Spanish, Asian and beyond. Bell County, maybe not so much.

It's part of what makes Texas the greatest state in the country - it's diversity creates so many delicious mixed delicacies, types of art, music and perspectives. The diversity is also bolstered by Fort Hood as people from all over the world serve their country right from the heart of Texas.

We checked out the website forebears.com, which provides an overwhelming amount of information regarding births, marriages, deaths, census, wills, cemeteries (seriously if you're a statistics junky, this is the site for you) and found a list of the 100 most common last names in Bell County.

1. Smith - 3,256: The most common of all surnames, and might of itself furnish matter enough for a volume. The word is derived from the Anglo—Saxon Smitan, to smite or strike. - Forebears
2. Johnson - 2,760: With the exception of the south - western counties, where it is absent or conspicuously rare, this name is distributed all over England, but in much less numbers in the south than in the midlands and in the north. - Forebears
3. Williams - 2,595: Williams is a patronymic surname derived from the forename William. Its early origins are in medieval England, but the primary source of the surname is from Wales, where most surnames were adopted between about 1500 and 1800. - Forebears
4. Brown - 2,158: A very common name in Scotland, of more than one origin.
5. Jones - 2,137: Jones is a patronymic surname, meaning the son of John, or Johan or Jone; as at first written and pronounced, both masculine and feminine. - Forebears
6. Davis - 1,771: We find that this surname is exceedingly numerous in Wales, and after Wales in the English counties on the Welsh border. - Forebears
7. Rodriguez - 1,463: Rodríguez meaning 'Son of Rodrigo' is a Spanish patronymic and a common family name surname in Spain and America.  - Forebears
8. Jackson - 1,353: "Son of Jack/James". This surname is more English than Scottish, as it has never been popular in Scotland. - Forebears
9. Miller - 1,291: Miller is derived from an occupation of one who grinds corn, also known as a 'milner'. This name is in the records of every county in England.
10. Thomas - 1,191: This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor, 'the son of Thomas.' Thomas or Thome (whence Tom) was a universal favourite. The 13th and 14th century registers teem with it; v. Tomlin, Tomlinson, Thomson, Thompson, Tomkins, Tomkinson, Tombs, etc. - Forebears

Forebears has 100 surnames listed in order of popularity in Bell County so if you didn't find your name in the top 10, odds are you'll find your name, its rank and its origin at forebears.com.

By the way... my last name - Eisenberg - not even close!