• Home
    • About the Guild
    • About one-name studies
    • Starting your ONS
    • Conducting ONS (videos)
    • Join Us
    • Guild Shop
  • Studies
    • Surnames A-Z
    • Recent Registrations
    • Registered Websites
    • Registered Societies
  • News
    • General News
    • Education News
    • Guild Public Newsletters
  • Forums
    • Facebook (public page)
  • Events
    • Calendar
    • Conference & AGM
    • Seminar events
    • Guild Webinars
  • Resources
    • Guild Journal
    • Members’ Websites
    • DNA
    • Modern Surnames
    • Those Who Served
    • Newspaper Index
    • Guild Indexes
    • Pharos ONS Courses
    • Speakers
  • Help
    • Reset your password
    • Contact Us
  • Log In

Guild of One-Name Studies

One-name studies, Genealogy

Is your surname here?

    • 2,588 members
    • 2,350 studies
    • 8,286 surnames

Extinction

Albertsen K. "The extinction of families"  International Statistical Review / Revue Internationale de Statistique 63(2), (Aug 1995),234-239

Baker, R. J. "Natural selection, onomastics, and population control : the Shufflebottom hypothesis." Dalhousie Review , no. 51(1972): 332-36.
Abstract: Lawson2: "examination of the reasons bynames such as Addlehead,Backoff,Ramsbottom, and Shufflebottom appear to be dying out"

Brouard, N. L’Extinction des noms de famille en France : une approche. Ined, 1989.

Christensen, C.M., Albertsen K., and Kristensen, E. " A Previously Unpublished Solution to Erlang’s “Problem of Extinction of Families” "  International Statistical Review / Revue Internationale de Statistique 63(2), (Aug 1995), 242-245

Dupaquier, Jacques. "Nos patronymes vont-ils disparaitre?" in: La Societe Francaise Ai XIX Siecle : Tradition, Transition, Tranformation, 461-88. (editor) Didier Blanchet. Paris: Fayard, 1992.

Galton, Francis. "Probable extinction of families." in: Natural Inheritance, Appendix F Francis Galton, 241-48. London: Macmillan and Co., 1889.

________. "[Problem 4001]." Educational Times (April 1873).

Galton, Francis and H. W. Watson. "On the probability of the extinction of families." Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 4 (1974): 138-44.

Hull, David. "A reconsideration of Galton’s problem: (Using a Two-Sex Population)." Theoretical Population Biology 54, no. 2 (October 1998): 105-16.
Abstract: "The main purposes of this paper are to promote and expound the bisexual Galton-Watson branching process as a relevant model for the consideration of Francis Galton’s problem regarding the extinction of surnames of `men of note’."

Kendall, David G. "Branching processes since 1873." J. London. Math. Soc. 41: 385-406.
Notes: Reprinted in: Studies in the history of statistics and probability. Vol 2. (1977) pp383-405

Körner, T. W. The pleasures of counting. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
Abstract: "The disappearance of surnames i..e. the dying out of the male line- commences a short discourse that prepares the student for a later course on Markov chains…however, in considering the growth of a surname (in his example, Smith, the model used assumes a late,rapid population growth; whereas the historical reality is different… "

Lange, Kenneth. "Minimum extinction probability for surnames and favorable mutations." Mathematical Biosciences 54, no. 1/2(1981): 71-78.
Abstract: Lawson1: "Uses mathematical proofs to develop extinction probability for surnames. Minimum probability is obtained when the variance in the number of offspring is smallest. 17 refs."

Lotka, A. J. "The extinction of families." Journal of the Washington Academy of Science, no. 21 (1931): 377-453.

Murphy. Mike ‘Tracing very long-term kinship networks using SOCSIM’  Demographic Research 10(7) May 2004
Notes: link to article
Abstract: Excellent summary of extinction rates

Natsoulas, Anthula, ""Population growth and family name extinction : Exploring Mathematical Models With Technology"." (1997):1997.
Notes: A presentation given at T3 Regional and Ohio MATYC/MAA Winter Institute, Columbus State Community College, Columbus, Ohio

Pollard, J. H. "The Extinction of surnames." in: Mathematical Models for the Growth of Human Populations J. H. Pollard, 97-111. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1973.

Raup, David. Extinction : bad genes or bad luck ? New York : London: W.W. Norton, 1991.
Notes: Note on extinction of surnames

Sturges, Christopher M. and Brian C. Haggett. Inheritance of English surnames. London: Hawgood Computing, 1987.

Wachter, Kenneth W. and Peter. Laslett. "Measuring patriline extinction for modeling social mobility in the past." in: Statistical Studies of Historical Social Research Academic Press, 1978, pp 113-36.

Watson, H. W. "Solution to Problem 4001." Educational Times (August 1873): 115-16.

Whittle, Peter. Probability. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1970.
Notes: pp 123-125, 148 covers the mathematics of surname extinction

Yasuda, N. et alia. "The evolution of surnames : and analysis of their distribution and extinction." Theoretical Population Biology, no. 5 (1974): 123-42.

THIS IS A DEFAULT WIDGET WHICH SHOULD NOT DISPLAY. DO NOT DELETE THIS.

Modern British Surnames

ww1

  • Modern British Surnames
    • About the research
    • Distribution
    • Variance
    • Statistics
    • Bibliography
      • By location
      • By topic
        • Leading names
        • Distribution
        • Migration
        • Linguistics
        • Mapping
        • Stability
        • Statistics
        • Extinction
        • Isonymy
        • Wider context
      • Given names
      • Societies
      • Periodicals
      • Websites
      • Author Index
    • Teaching
    • Taxonomy

Other Guild Websites

You may find our other Guild websites of interest:

  • Members’ Websites Program
  • Surname Cloud
  • Guild Members’ records on FamilySearch
  • Guild Marriage Locator

Contact Us

Email: Guild General Contact
Postal address:
c/o Secretary
Edendale, 113 Stomp Road
Burnham, Berkshire, SL1 7NN, U.K
Call us free on:
UK: 0800 011 2182
US & Canada: 1-800-647-4100
Australia: 1800 305 184

Follow Us


  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • YouTube

Guild of One-Name Studies Policies:    Privacy   CIO Membership and Registration Conditions   Sales   COVID-19 Impact

© 2013–2023 Guild of One-Name Studies CIO. Registered Charity in England and Wales, No. 1197944.