PRICE - Surname Meaning and Family History

Price is a patronymic surname derived from the Welsh ap Rhys, meaning "son of Rhys." The given name Rhys means "enthusiasm" in Welsh.

Price is the 84th most popular surname in the United States. Price is also popular in England, coming in as the 47th most common surname.

Surname Origin: Welsh

Alternate Surname Spellings: PRYCE, PRIS, PRYS, PREECE, PREES, PRICE, PREIS, PREUSS

Famous People with the PRICE Surname

• Leontyne Price - African-American professional soprano opera singer
• Vincent Price - American actor
• Bruce Price - architect of many of the Canadian Pacific Railway's Château-type stations and hotels
• Carey Price - Canadian hockey goaltender for the NHL Montreal Canadiens
• Richard Price - Welsh philosopher
• William Price - 19th-century Welsh physician and eccentric
• Florence Beatrice Price (born Smith) - award-winning African-American pianist and composer

Where is the PRICE Surname Most Common?

According to surname distribution from Forebears, Price is the 1,357th most common surname in the world—found most prevalently in the United States, but most common in Wales based on percentage of the population bearing the name. The Price surname ranks as the 19th most common last name in Wales, 71st most common in England and 82nd most common in the United States. In 1881 the Price surname was most common in southern Wales, especially in Glamorganshire, Brecknockshire, Radnorshire and Monmouthshire.

Surname maps from WorldNames PublicProfiler also show the Price surname as especially common in Wales, as well as in the West Midlands region of England. Within the United States, Price is most common in the state of North Carolina, followed by South Carolina and West Virginia.

Genealogy Resources for the Surname PRICE

100 Most Common U.S. Surnames & Their Meanings
Smith, Johnson, Williams, Jones, Brown... Are you one of the millions of Americans sporting one of these top 100 common last names from the 2000 census?

Price, Priest, Pryce Surname DNA Project
This DNA project is connecting individuals with the Price surname and Welsh derivatives such as Breece, Breeze, Brice, Bryce, Preece, Preecs, Prees, Priest, Pris, Prys, Reece, Rees, Reese, Rhys, Rice and the German variants Preis and Preuss, who are interested in using both Y-DNA and mtDNA testing to help discover common Price or Pryce ancestors.

Price Family Crest - It's Not What You Think
Contrary to what you may hear, there is no such thing as a Price family crest or coat of arms for the Price surname. Coats of arms are granted to individuals, not families, and may rightfully be used only by the uninterrupted male line descendants of the person to whom the coat of arms was originally granted.

Price Family Genealogy Forum
This free message board is focused on descendants of Price ancestors around the world. Search or browse the archives for your Price ancestors, or join the group and post your own Price family query.

FamilySearch - PRICE Genealogy
Explore over 5.4 million results from digitized historical records and lineage-linked family trees related to the Price surname on this free website hosted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

DistantCousin.com - PRICE Genealogy & Family History
Explore free databases and genealogy links for the last name Price.

GeneaNet - Price Records
GeneaNet includes archival records, family trees, and other resources for individuals with the Price surname, with a concentration on records and families from France and other European countries.

The Price Genealogy and Family Tree Page
Browse genealogy records and links to genealogical and historical records for individuals with the Price surname from the website of Genealogy Today.
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References: Surname Meanings & Origins

Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967.

Dorward, David. Scottish Surnames. Collins Celtic (Pocket edition), 1998.

Fucilla, Joseph. Our Italian Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 2003.

Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989.

Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003.

Reaney, P.H. A Dictionary of English Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1997.

Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.

>> Back to Glossary of Surname Meanings & Origins