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    • Main contributor: Thomas MacEntee

    Finnish-American surnames carry rich clues about family origins. Understanding traditional Finnish naming patterns and how names changed after immigration can greatly aid genealogical research. This guide explains common Finnish surname patterns (like the -nen and -la suffixes, patronymics, and nature-based names), how names were Anglicized in the United States, and where Finnish immigrants settled. We also outline major Finnish immigration waves and provide resources to help trace Finnish-American ancestry. This information is presented in a clear, accessible way for genealogists of all experience levels.

    Common Finnish Surname Patterns and OriginsCommon Finnish Surname Patterns and Origins

    Patronymics and Late Adoption of Surnames: Historically, Finns often used patronymic surnames derived from the father’s first name. For example, Heikki Matinpoika means “Heikki, Matti’s son,” and Maria Juhontytär means “Maria, Juho’s daughter”. Permanent hereditary surnames were not legally required in Finland until 1920, so earlier records may list individuals by first name and patronymic. Many rural Finns also used farm names (the name of the family farmstead) as an identifier, which could change if the family moved.

    The “-nen” Suffix: More than one-third of Finns have surnames ending in “-nen,” a distinctive Finnish surname suffix. Originally a diminutive, -nen in surnames came to signify “belonging to a place” – essentially indicating the family’s home or origin. For example, Virtanen literally means “small stream,” implying a family living near a stream. Mäkinen means “small hill,” i.e. the family from the hill. This Eastern Finnish naming tradition spread nationwide in the 19th century, so -nen names (like Korhonen, Virtanen, Nieminen, Mäkinen, Hämäläinen, Koskinen, Heikkinen, Järvinen) are now common across Finland. These names often describe natural features of a homestead (streams, hills, etc.), reflecting how surnames identified a family’s locale.

    “-la/-lä” Surnames: In western Finland, many surnames end in “-la” or “-lä,” indicating association with a place or farm. For example, Mäkelä (“hill + la”) signifies a place connected to a hill, and Mattila means “Matti’s farm” (i.e. the family from Matti’s farm). Such names often originated as farm names. Some -la names also derive from professions – for instance, Seppälä comes from seppä (smith), meaning a homestead with a smithy.

    Nature and Place-Based Names: Finnish surnames frequently draw from nature and geography, even without the suffixes above. Common examples include Kanerva (heather), Niemi (peninsula), Kivi (stone), Nummi (moor), Halla (frost). These names speak to Finland’s landscape and were often chosen during the 19th-century National Romantic movement when many families adopted Finnish-language surnames. During that period, some Finns with Swedish-style surnames even Fennicized their names – for example, writer Alexis Stenvall changed his surname to Aleksis Kivi (“rock”). Genealogists should note that an ancestor’s surname might have changed within Finland (from Swedish to Finnish) in the early 1900s before immigration.

    How Finnish Surnames Changed in AmericaHow Finnish Surnames Changed in America

    When Finnish immigrants arrived in the U.S., they sometimes altered their names to better fit their new environment. Many Finns kept their original surname or made only minor adjustments, but others Anglicized their names for easier spelling or pronunciation:

    • Spelling Simplification: Finnish names containing letters like ä, ö, or å were typically modified to use the standard English alphabet. For example, Järvinen would be written as Jarvinen (ä → a), Hämäläinen as Hamalainen, and Nygård (a Swedish-style name) became Nygard (å → a). These simple spelling changes did not alter the name’s basic form but removed diacritics or unusual letter combinations.
    • Shortening Long Names: If a surname was long or complex, immigrants sometimes shortened it. A multi-part name like Peltomäki might be shortened to Maki, dropping the first part, and Hautaniemi might be shortened to Niemi. This preserved part of the original meaning (“mäki” means hill; “niemi” means cape) while yielding a simpler name. Even some Swedish-origin Finnish names were truncated (e.g. Grandholm to Holm) to make them less cumbersome.
    • Translation to English: Some chose to translate their Finnish surnames into English. For instance, Mäki (meaning “hill”) was translated to Hill. Likewise, a surname meaning “smith” was sometimes changed to Smith. In fact, Finnish surnames like Seppä/Seppälä (which relate to a smith) were occasionally Anglicized directly to Smith. This direct translation made the name instantly familiar to Americans.
    • Phonetic or Partial Anglicization: Others altered names to something that sounded similar in English. For example, Valtonen might become Walton (preserving a similar sound). In some cases, Finnish immigrants adopted -son surnames common in America. A man named Johan Eriksson Nygård might drop the Finnish farm name and use Erickson (English spelling of Eriksson) or Johnson, since patronymic “son” names like Johnson, Carlson, or Anderson were easily recognized. This was especially true if the person had a patronymic that could serve as a surname; many chose the patronymic as their American surname when faced with multiple name parts. (Notably, people arriving after 1920 less often changed to “-son” names, as by then Finland had fixed surnames.)
    • Adopting New Names: In some cases, immigrants took on an entirely new surname to assimilate. One might abandon a difficult Finnish name in favor of a common American name. For example, a person named Hietala chose the surname Wilson in the U.S., and an unmarried Finnish woman named Johanna Karlsdotter Bjurbäck became Hanna Carlson in America (taking an Americanized form of her patronymic). First names were Americanized too (e.g. Maria to Mary, Kalle to Carl). It’s worth noting that contrary to myth, most name changes were voluntary choices by the immigrants (or their descendants), not mistakes by officials.

    Examples of Finnish-American Surnames: Many Finnish surnames in the U.S. remained recognizable but with slight tweaks. Virtanen might appear as Wirtanen in old records (since English speakers often heard v as w), while Korhonen usually stayed the same. Names like Mäkinen or Hämäläinen were often written without accents (Makinen, Hamalainen), and some families shortened these to Maki or Hamlin. A name like Virtanen (meaning “stream”) might be left as-is, whereas Paavola (from Paavo’s place) could be shortened to Paavo or changed to Paulson (mixing a given name with a -son). Genealogists should be alert for creative changes – one family might even split, with siblings adopting different surnames in America. Always cross-reference multiple records to connect an American name back to the original Finnish name.

    Finnish Immigration Waves and U.S. Settlement AreasFinnish Immigration Waves and U.S. Settlement Areas

    Finns arrived in America in several waves and settled in distinct regions, which can guide your research:

    • Colonial and Early Arrivals: The first Finns in North America came in 1638 as part of the short-lived New Sweden colony in Delaware. These early Finnish pioneers largely assimilated into colonial society within a few generations (many Anglicizing their surnames). In the 1840s–1850s, some Finns (under Russian rule) worked in Alaska’s Russian-American Company settlements, and a few Finnish sailors jumped ship during the California Gold Rush, but these numbers were small.
    • Major 19th–Early 20th Century Wave: The primary Finnish immigration took place between 1864 and 1924, during which about 300,000 Finns came to the U.S. (and Canada). Economic hardships, population growth, and Russian imperial policies (like forced conscription in the early 1900s) spurred many to leave Finland. The peak years were around the turn of the century; for instance, in one peak year over 20,000 Finns emigrated. Most of these immigrants were young, single men (and later many women) from rural areas—especially northwestern Finland (Vaasa province)—seeking work in America’s mines, forests, and factories. Finnish newcomers commonly found jobs in copper and iron mines, lumber camps, fishing canneries, quarries, railroads, and textile mills. They formed tight-knit communities often centered around Lutheran churches, temperance societies, or socialist halls, depending on their political and religious leanings.
    • Late 20th Century: After a lull due to restrictive U.S. immigration laws in the 1920s, a smaller post–World War II immigration wave occurred. In the late 1940s and 1950s, some Finns (often more politically conservative and strongly nationalistic) revitalized Finnish-American communities. Another minor uptick happened in the 1970s–80s, with young Finnish professionals moving for high-tech jobs. These later migrants were fewer, but they helped maintain cultural ties.

    Key Finnish-American Regions: Finnish immigrants predominantly settled in the northern United States, where the climate and industries were familiar:

    • Midwest (Great Lakes): The largest Finnish populations took root in the upper Midwest. Michigan (especially the Upper Peninsula’s “Copper Country” around Hancock and Houghton) and Minnesota (the iron ranges of northern Minnesota, such as around Hibbing and Duluth) attracted tens of thousands of Finns for mining and logging work. By the early 1900s, Finns were the largest immigrant group in parts of these regions, even comprising over 75% of the population in certain small mining towns. Significant communities also formed in northern Wisconsin and Ontario (Canada) just across the border. Today, Michigan and Minnesota remain the states with the highest number of Americans of Finnish ancestry (over 100,000 each).
    • East Coast: Finnish immigrants and Finland-Swedish immigrants (Swedish-speaking Finns) established communities in the Northeast. Massachusetts had notable Finnish enclaves in industrial cities like Fitchburg and Worcester, where Finns built churches and labor halls. There was also a “Finntown” community in Brooklyn, New York City, known for its cooperative housing and Finnish newspaper. Smaller groups lived in Maine and Pennsylvania, but Massachusetts (along with the Midwest) was a major destination in the early 1900s. By 1990, Massachusetts still had one of the top five Finnish-ancestry populations in the country.
    • West Coast: Drawn by opportunities in logging and fishing, Finnish immigrants settled in the Pacific Northwest. Washington State and Oregon saw Finnish farming and fishing villages – for example, Finns lived in communities on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula and the Lower Columbia River area (the town of Astoria, Oregon had a large Finnish population). Many Finns also moved to California (San Francisco Bay area and Los Angeles) in the early 20th century or later, giving California one of the largest Finnish-American populations by the end of the century.
    • Other Regions: Smaller Finnish settlements appeared in the Dakotas (e.g. farming communities of Laestadian Finns), and later on, retirement communities emerged in Florida and Arizona for Finnish snowbirds. But the core Finnish-American heritage areas remain the Great Lakes, New England, and Pacific Northwest.

    Genealogical Tip: Knowing where your Finnish ancestors settled can guide you to local records. Many areas with Finnish communities had Finnish-language churches and newspapers. For example, church records from a Finnish Lutheran congregation in Michigan or Minnesota might list original Finnish names. Finnish newspapers (over 120 were published in the U.S.) can also provide clues like obituaries in Finnish. Local Finnish heritage societies in these regions often maintain archives that are treasure troves for family researchers.

    Recommended Genealogical Resources for Finnish-American Ancestry:Recommended Genealogical Resources for Finnish-American Ancestry:

    • Institute of Migration (Siirtolaisuusinstituutti) – Emigrant Register: Database of Finnish emigrants (passport records, passenger lists) to North America (subscription may be required). Helps find when and from where your ancestor left Finland.
    • HisKi Church Records Database: Hosted by the Genealogical Society of Finland, this free tool lets you search 19th-century Finnish parish records for births, marriages, and deaths. It’s invaluable for tracing family in Finland before emigration.
    • Finland’s Family History Association (FFHA): Provides free digitized church books and other records from Finland. Browse scans of communion books, census records, etc., once you know the parish. Great for verifying details from HisKi.
    • MyHeritage: Global genealogy website with Finnish collections (church records, census, immigrant arrival lists) and Finnish-American records (U.S. Census, naturalizations).
    • Finnish American Archives & Societies: For U.S. records, explore archives like the Finnish American Heritage Center (Michigan), the Swedish Finn Historical Society, or local Finnish genealogy groups (e.g. the Finnish Genealogy Group of Minnesota). They offer regional databases, newspapers, cemetery indexes, and community histories that can provide context and details on your Finnish-American family.

    By understanding the origins of Finnish surnames and how they evolved in America, genealogists can better recognize name variations and trace their ancestors across the ocean. From the meaning of a surname’s suffix to the mining town where a family settled, each clue brings you closer to your Finnish-American heritage.

    See alsoSee also

    Explore more about Finnish-American surnamesExplore more about Finnish-American surnames

    References


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    APA citation (7th Ed.)

    Thomas MacEntee. (2025, August 5). *Finnish American surnames*. MyHeritage Wiki. https://www.myheritage.com/wiki/Finnish_American_surnames