Anyway, this tool is a really interesting way for those of us with certain origins (mainly Western European, Indian and Japanese) to get a high-level overview of where we came from. Simply plug in a last name, and the tool will search public directories for people with that same last name all over the world. Zoom in down to county level, and you can see where large concentrations of people with that last name are currently living. (Which usually corresponds to where that name originated, or where it took root here in the U.S.)
I tested the last names of all of my grandparents, and learned something new (or confirmed something I already knew) every time. First, my mom's father's family (with a fairly common last name) is still most concentrated in the South Carolina County where they first appeared in the late 1700s. The largest concentration of people with my last name is still in the county in Ireland where legend says we originated as a branch of the Ui Neill family.
I also ran my friend Roy's last name, and saw the largest concentration of his family in Australia - Tasmania, to be specific. Now, what does that tell me about Roy? Well...isn't Tasmania where they sent British convicts a long time ago? Now Roy's an upstanding guy, with no convictions on his record (Arrests? Sure. But never convicted). Based on the evidence that he comes from a family with an inclination towards criminality, I may want to watch him around my wallet more closely in the future. (See, this thing's paying for itself already.)
Anyway; try this out and see if you don't find something interesting.
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