Show ContentsSvoboda History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Svoboda

What does the name Svoboda mean?

The surname Svoboda is a derived from the Czech word "svoboda," which means 'freedom, free owner or yeoman'. This was the term used in feudal times for a freeman, that is, a free man who is not a servant to someone else. Svoboda is the third most common Czech surname and has been since at least 1937.

Early Origins of the Svoboda family

The surname Svoboda was first found in Moravia and Bohemia that today form the proud Czech Republic.

Early History of the Svoboda family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Svoboda research. Another 41 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1622, 1712, 1777, 1814, 1819, 1859, 1873, 1902 and 1914 are included under the topic Early Svoboda History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Svoboda Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Szvoboda, Swoboda, Svoboda and others.

Early Notables of the Svoboda family

Notable among the name Svoboda at this time we found

  • Leopold Svoboda who was granted Austrian knighthood from Emperor Franz Josef I on April 17, 1873 for his outstanding services

Svoboda Ranking

In the United States, the name Svoboda is the 8,160th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1


Svoboda migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Svoboda Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Frank Svoboda, who landed in Texas in 1850-1906 2
Svoboda Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Mr. Melchiart Svoboda, (b. 1899), Czechoslovakian farm labourer traveling from Bremen, Germany aboard the ship "President Roosevelt" arriving in New York, New York, United States on the 6th October 1922.
  • Anton Svoboda, who arrived in Alabama in 1924 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Svoboda (post 1700) +

  • Kathy Kay Hartford Svoboda, American biologist
  • Jim Svoboda (b. 1960), American football coach and former player, currently the offensive coordinator at Tulane University
  • J. Steven Svoboda, American patent lawyer who has been an attorney since 1991. He is the founder of the California-based organization, Attorneys for the Rights of the Child
  • William Ray Svoboda (1928-1980), American football linebacker
  • Terese Svoboda, American author
  • Robert Edwin Svoboda (b. 1953), American author and ayurvedic doctor
  • Tomas Svoboda (b. 1939), prolific Czech-American contemporary classical composer
  • Ken Svoboda, American Republican politician, Candidate for Mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska, 2007; Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Nebraska, 2008 3
  • Frank J. Svoboda, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Ohio, 1956; Candidate for Presidential Elector for Ohio, 1956 3
  • E. J. Svoboda, American Democratic Party politician, Chair of Howard County Democratic Party, 1940 3
  • ... (Another 41 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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