Smit
Encyclopedia
Smit is a Dutch surname deriving from the Dutch
word for "smith
" (metal worker), Smit. Therefore, it is the direct Dutch equivalent of the English surname Smith
.
An imperfect comparison can be made to primary English-speaking
countries as of 1998 based on research by The National Trust
. In 1998, the highest frequency was observed in New Zealand as 97.18 occurrences per million people, or ~1/30th the rate found in the Netherlands of 50 years before. Among the nations examined in the National Trust study, relative frequencies for 1991 were: New Zealand > Australia Canada United States > Northern Ireland > Great Britain > Republic of Ireland. The substantial difference between Canada and the United States indicated in this series is approximately 3.5 fold.
Born after 1800
Born after 1900
Born after 1950
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
word for "smith
Smith (metalwork)
A metalsmith, often shortened to smith, is a person involved in making metal objects. In contemporary use a metalsmith is a person who uses metal as a material, uses traditional metalsmithing techniques , whose work thematically relates to the practice or history of the practice, or who engages in...
" (metal worker), Smit. Therefore, it is the direct Dutch equivalent of the English surname Smith
Smith (surname)
Smith is an English family name originating in England. It is the most common surname in the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States, the second most common surname in Canada, and the fifth most common surname in Ireland...
.
Frequency of occurrence in general populations
Information for surname frequency in the Netherlands is limited by the end of comprehensive census taking in the year 1971. The most recent readily available information is based on the 1947 census, for which both raw census data and surname frequency data have been made available to the general public. In 1947 there were 29,783 recorded people with the surname Smit, while the general census provides a figure of 9,519,000 as the 1947 population. Working with this data the frequency of the Smit surname in the Netherlands in 1947 can be calculated to be ~0.313% or ~3,130 of every 1,000,000 people. By comparison, the most common Dutch surname in the 1947 data was de Jong, which had a frequency of ~0.580%.An imperfect comparison can be made to primary English-speaking
Anglosphere
Anglosphere is a neologism which refers to those nations with English as the most common language. The term can be used more specifically to refer to those nations which share certain characteristics within their cultures based on a linguistic heritage, through being former British colonies...
countries as of 1998 based on research by The National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
. In 1998, the highest frequency was observed in New Zealand as 97.18 occurrences per million people, or ~1/30th the rate found in the Netherlands of 50 years before. Among the nations examined in the National Trust study, relative frequencies for 1991 were: New Zealand > Australia Canada United States > Northern Ireland > Great Britain > Republic of Ireland. The substantial difference between Canada and the United States indicated in this series is approximately 3.5 fold.
Notable people sharing the Smit surname
Listed here are people who share the 'Smit' surname, organized by birth year, to assist in assembling a view of the geographic distribution of this surname over time. Modern country names are used below rather than historical names. First letter country abbreviations are used when runs of a particular country's nationals appear.Born after 1800
- Netherlands (1836–1929) Joseph SmitJoseph SmitJoseph Smit was a Dutch zoological illustrator.-Background:...
Born after 1900
- Netherlands (1900–1943) Leo Smit
- N. (1903–1986) Wisse Alfred Pierre SmitWisse Alfred Pierre SmitWisse Alfred Pierre Smit was a poet and an influential Dutch literary historian. He was a specialist in Dutch literature of the Golden Age ....
- N. (1911–1974) Kick SmitKick SmitJohannes Chrishostomos "Kick" Smit was a Dutch football player. He earned 29 caps and scored 26 goals for the Netherlands national football team, and played in the 1934 and 1938 World Cups. During his club career, he played for HFC Haarlem.-References:...
- N. (born 1916) Arie SmitArie SmitAdrianus Wilhelmus Smit , is a Dutch-born Indonesian painter living on Bali.- Early life :Arie Smit was the third of eight children of a trader in cheese and confectionery. His family moved in 1924 from Zaandam to Rotterdam, where Smit eventually studied graphic design at the Academy of Arts...
, now a citizen of Indonesia - Norway (1916–1991) Jörgen SmitJörgen SmitJörgen Smit was a Norwegian teacher, teachers teacher, speaker and writer, mainly in the context of the Anthroposophical Society and the Waldorfschool Movement...
, anthroposophist - United States (1921–1995) Leo Smit (American composer)Leo Smit (American composer)-Life:Leo Smit was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As a child his mother took him to Russia where he studied with the composer Dmitri Kabalevsky. He later studied piano in New York with Isabella Vengerova and José Iturbi and composition with Nicolas Nabokov...
- Netherlands (1930–2008) Klaas SmitKlaas SmitKlaas Smit was a Dutch football player. He scored the very first goal in professional football in the Netherlands.- References :...
- South Africa (or Namibia) (born 1935) Willem SmitWillem SmitWillem Smit was formerly an operative for the United States Central Intelligence Agency in Africa and South America. He was widely believed to have perished in Bolivia in the 1960s, however, in the 1980s a man claiming to be Smit surfaced as a pawnshop owner in Los Alamos, New Mexico.Smit was born...
- S. (died 1977) Robert Smit (politician)Robert Smit (politician)Robert Smit was a member of South Africa's National Party, and was murdered together with his wife Jean-Cora in 1977. They were survived by their two children, who were staying at their Roper Street home in Pretoria....
- Netherlands (living) Jan Smit (physicist)
Born after 1950
- Netherlands (born 1954) Tim SmitTim SmitTim Smit KBE is a Dutch-born British businessman, famous for his work on the Lost Gardens of Heligan and the Eden Project, both in Cornwall, Britain.-Biography:...
, emigrated to England - N. (1961–2005) Peter SmitPeter SmitPeter "The Hurricane" Smit was a Dutch martial artist who mastered such different fight disciplines as kyokushin karate, kickboxing and Muay Thai....
- N. (born 1963) Carola SmitCarola SmitCarola Sier-Smit is a Dutch singer and, since March 25, 1984, a member of Dutch pop band BZN.Carola began her musical career in 1980 , when she joined the band Double Trouble. When she was with that band, she released her first single Never Loved This Way Before...
- N. (born 1968) Princess Mabel of Orange-NassauPrincess Mabel of Orange-NassauPrincess Mabel of Orange-Nassau is the wife of Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau ....
, whose adopted name was Mabel Martine Wisse Smit - England (born 1972) Jane SmitJane SmitJane Smit is an English cricketer and former member of the England team. A wicket keeper, she was formerly married to Australian-born Derbyshire and Northamptonshire cricketer Matthew Cassar but she has reverted to her maiden name...
- Netherlands (born 1975)3 Minouche SmitMinouche SmitMinouche Smit is a former freestyle and medley swimmer from the Netherlands, who competed for her native country at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia....
, Marnix SmitMarnix SmitMarnix Smit is a Dutch footballer who currently plays for Heracles Almelo. Smit was born in Almelo and made his debut in professional football in the 1999-00 season.-References:...
, Theo M. SmitTheo M. SmitTheo M. Smit is a Dutch chemist who has made several contributions to the field of polymerization catalysis.After completing an MSc. at Leiden University, Dr. Smit gained a PhD at Imperial College London under the supervision of Prof. Vernon C. Gibson... - N. (born 1976)2 Gretha SmitGretha SmitGretha Smit is a Dutch speed skater.Smit won a surprising silver medal in the 2002 Winter Olympics in the 5000 meter event. She skated a world record broken in a later pair by Claudia Pechstein...
, Michiel SmitMichiel SmitMichiel Smit is a former Dutch politician and leader of Nieuw Rechts, a nationalist political party.-Political office:... - South Africa (born 1978) John SmitJohn SmitJohn William Smit is the 50th and current captain of the South African national rugby union team, the Springboks. He has played most of his career as a hooker, but played twice for the Springboks off the bench as a prop prior to the South Africa coaching staff's decision to use him as a tighthead...
- Netherlands (born 1980) Arvid SmitArvid SmitArvid Smit is a Dutch footballer who plays for Telstar in the Dutch second division, as a midfielder.-Football career:...
- N. (born 1985)2 Jan Smit (singer)Jan Smit (singer)Johannes Hendricus Maria "Jan" Smit is a Dutch pop music and schlager singer. He scored his first number one position in the Dutch charts with Ik zing dit lied voor jou alleen in 1997...
, Alexander SmitAlexander SmitAlexander Roelof Smit is a Dutch baseball player for the Cincinnati Reds organization, playing for their Double-A affiliate the Carolina Mudcats.... - South Africa (born 1987) Nicolette Smit
- United States (born 1990) Catherine Smit
Compound surnames
- Haagen-Smit: Netherlands (1900–1977) Arie Jan Haagen-SmitArie Jan Haagen-SmitArie Jan Haagen-Smit was a Dutch chemist. He is best known for linking the smog in Southern California to automobiles and is therefore known by many as the "father" of air pollution control. After serving as an original board member of the Motor Vehicle Pollution Control Board, formed in 1960 to...
, emigrated to the United States - Cornelius Hendric Smit: Netherlands (born 1960)
- Reus-Smit: Australia (born 1961) Christian Reus-SmitChristian Reus-SmitChris Reus-Smit is Professor of International Relations at the European University Institute in Florence. He is a leading constructivist scholar in the field of international relations, and is arguably Australia's pre-eminent scholar in the field...
- Smit-McPhee: Australia (born 1992) Sianoa Smit-McPheeSianoa Smit-McPheeSianoa Smit-McPhee is an Australian actress. She is best known for her two years in Australian soap Neighbours as Breanna Timmins. Sianoa's next role was in the children's television series As the Bell Rings, which used to air on the Disney Channel.In 2007, Sianoa appeared as Desma, the lead...
and (born 1996) Kodi Smit-McPheeKodi Smit-McPheeKodi Smit-McPhee is an award-winning Australian actor, most known for his roles as The Boy in the The Road and Owen in Let Me In. He has also appeared in Australian films, Romulus, My Father and Matching Jack....
, who are siblings - Jana Smit: South Africa (born 1986)
Disambiguation pages
- Jan Smit
- Robert Smit