Find out how popular the last name Alloway is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Alloway.

Alloway, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Alloway surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alloway in America

Alloway is the 14286th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alloway surname appeared 2,096 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Alloway.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alloway to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Alloway

The surname Alloway originates from Scotland, deriving its name from the village of Alloway in Ayrshire. The name is believed to have emerged in the 12th century, with the earliest recorded spelling being "Aloway" in the 13th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "alu" meaning "alder tree" and "wic" meaning "dwelling" or "village", indicating that the name referred to a settlement near an alder tree grove.

One of the earliest known references to the name Alloway can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a record of Scottish landowners and nobles who pledged allegiance to King Edward I of England. The name is listed as "John de Aloway", suggesting that the family held land or property in the area.

In the 15th century, the name appears in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, with a "Thomas Alloway" mentioned as a tenant farmer in the year 1456. This record provides insight into the social status and occupation of some early bearers of the name.

Alloway is also closely associated with the famous Scottish poet Robert Burns, who was born in 1759 in the village of Alloway. His poem "Tam o' Shanter" is set in the area and mentions the old Alloway Kirk and the nearby Brig o' Doon, immortalizing the name in literary history.

Notable individuals with the surname Alloway include:

1. Sir William Alloway (c. 1505-1573), a Scottish landowner and Member of Parliament during the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots.
2. Robert Alloway (1597-1666), a Scottish minister and author of religious texts.
3. John Alloway (1670-1732), a Scottish merchant and co-founder of the Company of Merchants of the City of Edinburgh.
4. William Alloway (1776-1846), a Scottish-born farmer and early settler in Upper Canada (modern-day Ontario, Canada).
5. Mary Alloway Wilbur (1828-1911), an American educator and advocate for women's rights, born in New York.

While the surname Alloway is not as common today, its rich history and connections to Scottish literature and culture make it a distinctive and intriguing name with deep roots in the region.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alloway

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Alloway.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Alloway was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Alloway has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Alloway was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Alloway, please contact us.

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