Johnson is used as a family name or surname in Ireland, Sweden, Scotland, England, Denmark. It is 7 characters long in length.

Family Name / Last Name: Johnson
No. of characters: 7
Origin: Ireland, Sweden, Scotland, England, Denmark
Meaning:

The last name Johnson is of English origin and dates back to the Medieval era. The name is derived from the given name John, which itself is derived from the Hebrew name יוֹחָנָן (Yohanan), meaning "Yahweh is gracious".

The first recorded use of the surname Johnson was in England in the year 1273. It is thought that the Johnson family were originally from Normandy, France, and migrated to England during the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Johnson family would have been given their land and titles by William the Conqueror as a reward for their loyalty and support during the invasion.

The Johnson family has produced many notable individuals throughout history, including presidents, prime ministers, astronauts, and authors. Some famous Johnsons include Andrew Johnson (17th President of the United States), Lyndon B. Johnson (36th President of the United States), Samuel Johnson (English author and lexicographer), and Sir John Franklin (British explorer).

How popular is Johnson?

Johnson is ranked 169 on our list.

As per 2010 US census, number of Johnsons grew by 4.07 per cent to 1932812 since 2000 however rank remains unchanged and the surname remained at 2 position. The last name was found in around 7 per thousand population. Please refer to following table for race and ethnicity.

Race 2010 2000
White 58.97 61.55
Black 34.63 33.8
Others 2.56 1.82
Hispanic or Latino 2.36 1.5
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.94 0.91
Asian and Native Hawaiian
& Other Pacific Islander		 0.54 0.42
Johnson is quite popular family name mostly used in United States while Bahamas is ahead in terms of density. Around 3169168 people have been found who wears Johnson as their family name. Johnson is used widely across the globe. More detailed information can be found below:
RankCountryCount
Countries with millions of Johnson:
2 United States2,283,675
Countries with hundred thousands of Johnson:
7 England191,454
118 Nigeria182,796
Countries with ten thousands of Johnson:
12 Sierra Leone79,984
9 Canada79,492
8 Australia67,462
4 Liberia63,249
5 Jamaica38,766
166 South Africa37,484
3,128 India17,121
431 Tanzania17,050
2 Bahamas10,134
Countries with thousands of Johnson:
35 Wales6,354
19 New Zealand6,145
906 Madagascar5,433
418 South Sudan5,284
165 Scotland5,118
1,340 Thailand4,066
37 Trinidad and Tobago3,505
19 Guyana3,129
307 Ireland3,088
1,862 Kenya2,972
2,913 France2,706
146 Papua New Guinea2,582
4,121 Germany2,575
365 Sweden2,552
7,848 Philippines2,105
684 Benin1,978
2,756 Spain1,752
360 Panama1,518
669 Dominican Republic1,402
41 Barbados1,377
24 Vanuatu1,377
1,049 Chile1,284
2,065 Ecuador1,199
2,230 Malaysia1,191
467 Oman1,158
2,358 Netherlands1,083
586 Honduras1,065
4,103 Mexico1,043
2,121 Zimbabwe1,022
Countries with hundreds of Johnson:
427 Northern Ireland884
596 Norway864
344 China803
10,482 Brazil786
17,110 Indonesia747
4,479 Ghana743
419 Botswana689
28 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines627
843 Denmark616
455 Costa Rica614
9,220 Japan610
7,760 Saudi Arabia596
2,705 Switzerland499
3,670 Belgium493
3,335 Chad481
13,257 Morocco443
8,510 Argentina424
6,468 Cameroon420
34,698 Russia412
268 Swaziland404
21 United States Virgin Islands389
5,701 Peru385
1,441 Kuwait366
216 Belize365
50 Grenada348
493 Fiji314
3,304 United Arab Emirates307
9,553 Pakistan299
29,993 Italy289
81 Guam276
53 Antigua and Barbuda275
35 Cayman Islands271
4,818 Ivory Coast252
4,128 Venezuela245
48 Saint Kitts and Nevis244
13 Marshall Islands243
26 Bermuda235
5,008 Colombia230
3,988 Iraq225
2,732 Portugal217
2,157 Cuba211
131 Micronesia210
15,356 Uganda209
944 Senegal193
38 Isle of Man192
1,181 Nicaragua184
771 Hong Kong181
6,334 Togo181
2,882 Guatemala168
114 Dominica167
11,333 Greece164
47 Guernsey162
365 Iceland160
47 Turks and Caicos Islands160
47 Jersey157
4,850 Finland145
759 Cyprus135
1,962 Bahrain132
3,380 Namibia126
234 South Korea125
8,556 Israel124
278 Saint Lucia119
1,070 Suriname115
38,722 Poland112
60 British Virgin Islands110
16,343 Czechia108
12,173 Austria105
Countries with low frequency i.e., 50 - 100:
2,255 Estonia92
5,295 Afghanistan90
9,590 Uzbekistan82
112 Northern Mariana Islands81
13,311 Zambia77
43 Gibraltar76
25,390 Romania73
3,419 Qatar72
108 American Samoa61
476 Malta60
3,674 Singapore60
9,112 Sri Lanka60
48,034 Egypt54
Countries with very low frequency i.e., 10 - 50:
29 Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha50
2,083 Solomon Islands50
31 Anguilla48
3,031 Sudan47
326 Aruba46
7,086 Latvia44
2,191 Vietnam44
1,442 French Polynesia43
8,179 Uruguay43
462 Seychelles41
4,434 Taiwan39
1,313 Brunei38
237 Gambia38
10,279 Haiti34
7,089 Mauritius34
32,667 Belarus33
23,012 Hungary32
77,125 Turkey32
151 Curaçao28
36 Montserrat28
1,709 Rwanda28
44,542 Kazakhstan27
42 Monaco26
166 Equatorial Guinea25
19,487 Malawi25
8,666 Burkina Faso24
36,711 Slovakia23
159 Cook Islands22
160,656 Ukraine22
182,862 DR Congo20
42 Saint Martin19
2,576 El Salvador18
1,249 Guinea18
13,497 Bangladesh17
14,510 Ethiopia15
4,885 Angola13
5,802 Cambodia13
2,373 Gabon12
12,816 Lebanon11
2,767 Puerto Rico11
Countries with very very low frequency i.e., 6 - 10:
14,332 Lesotho10
37,248 Niger10
36,710 Croatia9
734 Djibouti9
1,868 Mali9
479 Samoa9
31,900 Bulgaria8
15,053 Congo8
16,405 Jordan8
17,382 Lithuania8
30,722 Moldova8
710 Greenland7
55 Niue7
12,065 Nepal6
29,487 Serbia6
Show Full Last Name Distribution

Immigrants to US

From Ireland

James Johnson worked as workman and hailed from Ireland. During the great famine, 25 years old embarked for New-York from Liverpool on Arabella and arrived on May 14, 1846. William Johnson (18) Workman, Robert Johnson, aged 20, Mason Peter Johnson, Alice Johnson, aged 24, Eliza. Johnson, aged 17, William Johnson (21) Farmer, 20 years old W. Johnson, William Johnson, aged 20, and 862 other Johnson around 47.56% of whom were workman while others worked as mason and spinster, farmer, clerk, dressmaker, bonnet maker/ hatter, servant, weaver, shoemaker, mechanic, miller, shop man, clergyman or church minister, founder, cutler, tailoress, carpenter, joiner, gentleman, miner migrated to US.

From Italy

Rosalia Johnson worked as dancer and hailed from Italy. 28 years old embarked for USA from Hamburg on Suevia and arrived on October 5, 1883.

From Germany

Valentin Johnson worked as farmer and hailed from Germany. 22 years old embarked for USA from Havre on Zurich and arrived on January 10, 1850. 40 years old Edward Johnson, Carl Johnson (26) Farmer, Grethe Johnson (28) Farmer, Farmer Georg. Johnson, 22 years old Stefan Johnson, 38 years old M. Johnson, 26 years old J.P. Johnson, 44 years old Britha. Johnson, Erich Johnson (6), and 1148 other Johnson around 56.93% of whom were laborer while others worked as merchant and daughter, seaman, mariner, miner, tailor, spinster, servant, mason, mechanic, baker, spinner, matron, gentleman, joiner, clerk, dressmaker, smith, carpenter, sailor, painter, teacher migrated to US from Bremen, Hamburg, Havre, London and Antwerp.

Johnson Namesakes

  • Dink Johnson, Dixieland jazz pianist, clarinetist, and drummer
  • Wendell Johnson, proponent of general semantics
  • Pierre-Marc Johnson, Quebec lawyer, physician and politician
  • Ole C. Johnson, Norwegian-American soldier
  • John S. Johnson, early American cyclist and speed skater
  • Rheta Grimsley Johnson, reporter and columnist for King Features Syndicate of New York
  • Boss Johnson, President
  • Romina Johnson, London-based R&B, soul
  • Uwe Johnson, German writer, editor, and scholar
  • Martin and Osa Johnson, were American adventurers and documentary filmmakers
  • Osa Johnson,
  • Howard E. Johnson, American swing alto saxophonist
  • Ernest Leonard Johnson, South African astronomer and a former staff member of the Union Observatory
  • Esther Johnson, English friend of Jonathan Swift
  • Mordecai Wyatt Johnson, American educator and pastor
  • Manuel John Johnson, British astronomer
  • Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson, were an English husband-and-wife team of entertainers
  • Charles Foster Johnson, American blogger, software developer
  • Marie Odee Johnson, American
  • John de Monins Johnson, English papyrologist
  • J. Rosamond Johnson, American composer and singer during the Harlem Renaissance
  • Guy Johnson, Irish-born military officer and diplomat for the Crown during the American War of Independence
  • Edward Hibberd Johnson, inventor and business associate of American inventor Thomas Alva Edison
  • Martin E. Johnson,
  • Philip G. Johnson, pioneer in the manufacturing of airplanes and in the creation and operation of commercial airlines
  • Charles K. Johnson, was,
  • Rogerline Johnson, American photographer
  • Suzen Johnson, former flight attendant, businesswoman and model
  • Penny Johnson, CBE has been Director of the Government Art Collection since 1997
  • Gregory Scott Johnson, was legally executed for beating and stomping 82-year-old Ruby Hutslar to death
  • Irving Johnson, American sail training pioneer, adventurer
  • Joseph Forsyth Johnson, English landscape architect and disciple of John Ruskin
  • Thomas Francis Johnson, U.S. Congressman
  • Soren Johnson, video game designer and programmer
  • William Frederick Johnson, Irish naturalist primarily interested
  • William Summer Johnson, American chemist and teacher
  • W. Ryerson Johnson, 20th-century American pulp fiction writer and editor
  • Thomas Herman Johnson, politician in Manitoba, Canada
  • Roosevelt Johnson, Liberian
  • William Ernest Johnson, British philosopher and logician mainly remembered for his 'Logic'
  • Jade Johnson, retired English track and field athlete
  • Jane Clayson Johnson, American journalist and author
  • Alexander Bryan Johnson, American philosopher and banker
  • David C. Johnson, David Johnson studied, among other places, at Harvard University
  • Iola Johnson, first African-American news anchor for a Dallas television station
  • Edward Earl Johnson, man convicted and executed by the U.S. state of Mississippi for the murder of a policeman
  • Betty Johnson, American traditional pop and cabaret singer
  • David S. Johnson, American computer scientist specializing
  • Halle Tanner Dillon Johnson, American physician
  • Norman Lloyd Johnson, professor of statistics and author or editor of several standard reference works
  • Andrew Johnson, 17th president of the United States
  • Robert Johnson, American blues singer-songwriter and musician
  • Magic Johnson, Johnson Jr

Johnson Namesakes

  • Dink Johnson, Dixieland jazz pianist, clarinetist, and drummer
  • Wendell Johnson, proponent of general semantics
  • Pierre-Marc Johnson, Quebec lawyer, physician and politician
  • Ole C. Johnson, Norwegian-American soldier
  • John S. Johnson, early American cyclist and speed skater
  • Rheta Grimsley Johnson, reporter and columnist for King Features Syndicate of New York
  • Boss Johnson, President
  • Romina Johnson, London-based R&B, soul
  • Uwe Johnson, German writer, editor, and scholar
  • Martin and Osa Johnson, were American adventurers and documentary filmmakers
  • Osa Johnson,
  • Howard E. Johnson, American swing alto saxophonist
  • Ernest Leonard Johnson, South African astronomer and a former staff member of the Union Observatory
  • Esther Johnson, English friend of Jonathan Swift
  • Mordecai Wyatt Johnson, American educator and pastor
  • Manuel John Johnson, British astronomer
  • Pearl Carr & Teddy Johnson, were an English husband-and-wife team of entertainers
  • Charles Foster Johnson, American blogger, software developer
  • Marie Odee Johnson, American
  • John de Monins Johnson, English papyrologist
  • J. Rosamond Johnson, American composer and singer during the Harlem Renaissance
  • Guy Johnson, Irish-born military officer and diplomat for the Crown during the American War of Independence
  • Edward Hibberd Johnson, inventor and business associate of American inventor Thomas Alva Edison
  • Martin E. Johnson,
  • Philip G. Johnson, pioneer in the manufacturing of airplanes and in the creation and operation of commercial airlines
  • Charles K. Johnson, was,
  • Rogerline Johnson, American photographer
  • Suzen Johnson, former flight attendant, businesswoman and model
  • Penny Johnson, CBE has been Director of the Government Art Collection since 1997
  • Gregory Scott Johnson, was legally executed for beating and stomping 82-year-old Ruby Hutslar to death
  • Irving Johnson, American sail training pioneer, adventurer
  • Joseph Forsyth Johnson, English landscape architect and disciple of John Ruskin
  • Thomas Francis Johnson, U.S. Congressman
  • Soren Johnson, video game designer and programmer
  • William Frederick Johnson, Irish naturalist primarily interested
  • William Summer Johnson, American chemist and teacher
  • W. Ryerson Johnson, 20th-century American pulp fiction writer and editor
  • Thomas Herman Johnson, politician in Manitoba, Canada
  • Roosevelt Johnson, Liberian
  • William Ernest Johnson, British philosopher and logician mainly remembered for his 'Logic'
  • Jade Johnson, retired English track and field athlete
  • Jane Clayson Johnson, American journalist and author
  • Alexander Bryan Johnson, American philosopher and banker
  • David C. Johnson, David Johnson studied, among other places, at Harvard University
  • Iola Johnson, first African-American news anchor for a Dallas television station
  • Edward Earl Johnson, man convicted and executed by the U.S. state of Mississippi for the murder of a policeman
  • Betty Johnson, American traditional pop and cabaret singer
  • David S. Johnson, American computer scientist specializing
  • Halle Tanner Dillon Johnson, American physician
  • Norman Lloyd Johnson, professor of statistics and author or editor of several standard reference works
  • Andrew Johnson, 17th president of the United States
  • Robert Johnson, American blues singer-songwriter and musician
  • Magic Johnson, Johnson Jr

Related Family Names: