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Arnold Family History

Arnold Surname Meaning

English, Scottish, German, Dutch, French (mainly Alsace and Lorraine), Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, Polish, Croatian, and Slovenian: from the ancient Germanic personal name Arnwald (Middle English Arnold, Old French Arnaut) composed of the elements arn ‘eagle’ + wald ‘rule, power’. This name was introduced to Britain by the Normans.

English: habitational name from either of two places called Arnold in Nottinghamshire and East Yorkshire from Old English earn ‘eagle’ + halh ‘nook’.

Jewish (Ashkenazic): adoption of the German personal name (see 1 above) at least in part on account of its resemblance to the Jewish name Aaron.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


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Where is the Arnold family from?

You can see how Arnold families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Arnold family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Arnold families were found in USA in 1880. In 1840 there were 413 Arnold families living in New York. This was about 17% of all the recorded Arnold's in USA. New York had the highest population of Arnold families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Arnold surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
  • 1840
  • 1880
  • 1920
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What did your Arnold ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Housewife were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Arnold. 15% of Arnold men worked as a Farmer and 7% of Arnold women worked as a Housewife. Some less common occupations for Americans named Arnold were Truck Driver and Housekeeper.

View Census Data for Arnold | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Farmer
    15%
  • Laborer
    14%
  • Salesman
    5%
  • Truck Driver
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Housewife
    7%
  • Teacher
    6%
  • Maid
    6%
  • Housekeeper
    6%

What Arnold family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 1 million census records available for the last name Arnold. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Arnold census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search US census records for Arnold

Passenger Lists

There are 87,000 immigration records available for the last name Arnold. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Arnold immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 210,000 military records available for the last name Arnold. For the veterans among your Arnold ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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