Ansay last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Ansay

A French surname derived from the place name Ancey, referring to a person from that location.

Ansay, 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 Ansay surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ansay in America

Ansay is the 67318th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ansay surname appeared 293 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Ansay.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ansay 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.

20102000Change (%)
Rank6731870052-3.98%
Count29326111.55%
Proportion per 100k0.100.100.00%

The history of the last name Ansay

The surname Ansay has its origins in France, where it can be traced back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "ansai," meaning "dwelling" or "homestead." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived in a particular area or settlement.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ansay can be found in the Cartulaire de Notre-Dame de Paris, a medieval manuscript from the 12th century. This document contains a reference to a person named Petrus de Ansay, indicating the presence of the surname in the region around Paris during that time period.

The name Ansay is also closely associated with the village of Ansacq in the Ardennes region of northeastern France. It is possible that the surname originated from this specific place name, which itself may have stemmed from the Old French word "ansai" or a similar root.

In the 13th century, records show a nobleman named Gilles d'Ansay, who was born around 1220 and held lands in the Champagne region of France. His descendants continued to use the surname Ansay for several generations, suggesting its established presence among the local nobility.

Another notable figure with the surname Ansay was Jean d'Ansay, a French military commander who fought in the Hundred Years' War during the 14th century. He was born around 1325 and served under the French King John II, playing a role in the defense of the kingdom against English forces.

During the 16th century, the Ansay family produced a notable scholar and theologian named Jacques d'Ansay. Born in 1545 in the town of Reims, he became a prominent figure in the Catholic Church and authored several influential works on theology and philosophy.

As the centuries passed, the Ansay surname spread to other regions of France and beyond, with individuals bearing this name making their mark in various fields. For example, in the 18th century, there was a French artist named Pierre-Hubert Ansay, who was known for his landscape paintings and was born in 1758 in the town of Valenciennes.

While the surname Ansay has its roots in France, it has since been adopted by families in other parts of the world, particularly in regions with historical French connections or migration patterns. However, the earliest recorded examples and the majority of historical references to the name can be traced back to its French origins and the areas surrounding Paris, Champagne, and the Ardennes region.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ansay

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

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 Ansay was:

Race/EthnicityPercentageTotal Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only74.06%217
Non-Hispanic Black Only(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only21.50%63
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races(S)%(S)
Hispanic Origin2.05%6

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 Ansay has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

20102000Change (%)
White74.06%77.01%-3.91%
Black(S)%(S)%(S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander21.50%17.62%19.84%
American Indian and Alaskan Native(S)%(S)%(S)%
Two or More Races(S)%1.92%(S)%
Hispanic2.05%2.30%-11.49%

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 Ansay was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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