Soundex Code
Manually calculating a Soundex code.
The Soundex uses a code made up of a combination of letters and numbers to represent how a name sounds, rather than how it is spelled. Most variations in spelling or misspelling should produce the same code number.
For example:
SMITH=S530
SMITHE=S530
SMYTH=S530
SMYTHE=S530
Soundex works reasonably well on names as they are pronounced in English, but it does not work very well in other languages.
To manually calculate a surname's Soundex code, follow these steps:
- Write down the first letter of the name.
- Assign code values to other letters as follows:
- Code Letters
- b, f, p, v
- c, g, j, k, q, s, x, z
- d, t
- l
- m, n
- r
- Do not code the letters a, e, i, o, u, h, w, and y.
- If a name has the same letter twice in a row, code it as if it were one letter.
- In the name Kelly, for example, you would code the two l's as just one l.
- If the name does not have enough letters to make three digits, add enough zeros to make 3 digits. For example, the surname Kelly has only one letter that can be coded. Therefore, the Soundex code is K400.
- When you have 3 digits in the code, stop, even if the surname has more letters.
- The first letter of the code is not counted as one of the three digits.
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