Marshall Surname

Meaning and origin of the surname Marshall

Occupational surname for a horse groom or master of horse, later a high military officer or household official, derived from Old French mareschal (from Germanic *marha 'horse' + *scalc 'servant').

Historically and linguistically, Marshall belongs to the English, French and Scottish family of surnames. It is conventionally pronounced "MAR-shəl".

United States Census frequency and ranking

In the official 2010 United States Census, Marshall was recorded 183,922 times, ranking as the 139th most common surname in the nation.

This represents an incidence rate of approximately 62.35 bearers per 100,000 Americans, or roughly 1 out of every 1,604 residents.

Race and ethnicity distribution

According to official decennial Census genealogy microdata, individuals bearing the surname Marshallreported the following racial and ethnic affiliations in the 2010 US Census:

Source: US Census Bureau, 2010 Census Surnames Data. Percentages may not sum to exactly 100% due to independent rounding or suppression of small cell counts for privacy protection.

History of the surname Marshall

Marshall is an occupational surname introduced to Britain by the Normans following 1066. It derives from Old French mareschal, which originated in Proto-Germanic *marhaz ('horse', root of mare) and *skalkaz ('servant' or 'caretaker'). Originally designating a horse groom, farrier, or blacksmith who shod and doctored horses, the title dramatically elevated during the feudal era into one of the highest officers of state and royal military commander (Earl Marshal).

The greatest historical bearer was William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (c. 1146–1219), celebrated as 'the greatest knight that ever lived', who served five English monarchs and served as regent of the kingdom during the minority of Henry III. The surname appears widely in medieval rolls, such as Geoffrey le Mareschal in the 1273 Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire. Settlers carrying the name Marshall arrived in Virginia and New England during the early seventeenth century.

In the 2010 United States Census, Marshall ranked 139th nationally with 183,922 recorded bearers (62.35 per 100,000 Americans), with 27.5 percent identifying as Black or African American. Revered American figures include pioneering Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, 4th Chief Justice John Marshall, World War II general and statesman George C. Marshall (architect of the Marshall Plan), and director Penny Marshall.

Notable people with the surname Marshall

• Thurgood Marshall (1908–1993), Pioneering civil rights lawyer and first African-American Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
• George C. Marshall (1880–1959), American five-star general, statesman, U.S. Secretary of State, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate
• John Marshall (1755–1835), Fourth Chief Justice of the United States who established the doctrine of judicial review in Marbury v. Madison
• Penny Marshall (1943–2018), American actress and film director, first female director to helm a film grossing over $100 million (Big)