Last Names

70+ Canadian Last Names That Pay Tribute To The Land Of Maple

Pretty cool, eh?

by Team Scary Mommy

Updated: April 19, 2022

Originally Published: Jan. 31, 2022

Canadian last names often reflect a family's history in the region.

Fly View Productions/Getty Images

Like the United States, Canada has seen multiple waves of immigration over the past several hundred years and is now a mix of numerous cultures and people who speak many different languages (although the country’s official languages are English and French). And before European colonizers arrived in North America and violently claimed it as their own, the country’s indigenous populations — referred to as First Nations in Canada — lived and worked across the land. Today, Canadian last names reflect these various chapters of the country’s history, some darker than others. If you’re hoping to honor your family’s heritage by giving your baby a unique name inspired by The Great White North (Canada’s nickname), these last names could be a promising place to start.

It’s also important to note that French last names are far more common in Canada than in the United States. That’s because before it ended up under British control (like the U.S.), Canada was colonized by France. And despite their best attempts, the British authorities couldn’t stop some Canadian regions — like modern-day Quebec — from speaking French. Eventually, both English and French became the country’s official languages. Today, roughly 23 percent of Canadians speak French as their first language, the majority of whom (85 percent) live in Quebec.

Now that you know a bit more about Canadian history, here’s a look at some classic Canadian last names, including their meaning and origin.

70+ Canadian Last Names That Pay Tribute To The Land Of Maple

Most Popular Canadian Last Names

1. Anderson

2. Baker

3. Beaulieu

4. Belanger

5. Bergeron

6. Bouchard

7. Boucher

8. Cameron

9. Campbell

10. Chan

11. Chen

12. Clark

13. Cloutier

14. Cote

15. Davis

16. Desjardins

17. Evans

18. Fortin

19. Fraser

20. Fournier

21. Gaboury

22. Gagne

23. Gagnon

24. Gauthier

25. Girard

26. Graham

27. Grant

28. Hall

29. Harris

30. Hill

31. Huppe

32. Jackson

33. Johnson

34. Johnston

35. Kennedy

36. Khan

37. King

38. Landry

39. Lapointe

40. Lavoie

41. Leblanc

42. Lefebvre

43. Levesque

44. Lewis

45. MacDonald

46. Martin

47. Mitchell

48. Michaud

49. Morin

50. Morrison

51. Murphy

52. Murray

53. Nadeau

54. Nguyen

55. Ouellet

56. Patel

57. Pelletier

58. Peters

59. Poirier

60. Reynolds

61. Richard

62. Rogen

63. Robinson

64. Simard

65. Singh

66. Thomas

67. Thompson

68. Tremblay

69. Walker

70. White

71. Wilson

72. Williams

73. Wong

74. Wright

75. Young

76. Zhang