2000
#7,824
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,922
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.45
Rare Last name
Autrey
An English surname of French origin, derived from the given name Aubrey, meaning "elf ruler" or "supernatural ruler."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,452 Americans carry the last name Autrey. That puts it at #8,164 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.30 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 76,989 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Autrey surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
4.5K
1 in 76,989
Census rank
#8,164
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,882 bearers of the surname Autrey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.30 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8164th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Autrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (5.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Autrey
The surname Autrey originated from the region of Normandy in northern France during the early medieval period. It is derived from the Old French name Audrieu, which itself is a variant of the Germanic name Aldrich, meaning "old ruler" or "venerable leader." The name was likely introduced to England and other parts of the British Isles after the Norman Conquest of 1066.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Autrey can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The Domesday Book mentions a landowner named Audrieu in the county of Wiltshire.
In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various spellings, including Audry, Audrey, and Awdry, reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions of the time. One notable bearer of the name during this period was John Audrey, a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of London, who lived from around 1220 to 1280.
The surname Autrey is also associated with several place names in England, such as Audrey's Wood in Gloucestershire and Audrey's Mead in Wiltshire. These place names likely derived from individuals with the surname Autrey who owned or resided in those areas.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Autrey. One of the earliest was Sir Thomas Audrey (c. 1330-1386), a English knight and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament for Wiltshire. Another was Sir John Audrey (c. 1470-1542), a prominent courtier and diplomat during the reigns of Henry VII and Henry VIII.
In the 17th century, Richard Autrey (1617-1680) was a renowned English philosopher and theologian who served as the Master of Trinity College, Cambridge. During the same period, Mary Audrey (1632-1707) was a writer and educator who published several works on education and moral instruction.
In the 18th century, Sir John Audrey (1722-1798) was a successful merchant and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the city of Bristol, England. He funded the construction of several public buildings and established charitable foundations for the poor.
While the surname Autrey has its roots in Normandy and England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including North America and other English-speaking countries, due to migration and immigration patterns over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Autrey
Among Census respondents with the surname Autrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (5.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Autrey bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Autrey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.6% · 2,973
- Black or African American13.4% · 520
- Two or more races5.5% · 212
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 140
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 22
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Autrey
Autrey appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#7,924
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,177
+255 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 1.42
Rank movement Down 100 places
2020
#8,164
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,882
-295 bearers (-7.1%)
Per 100,000 1.30
Rank movement Down 240 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,824 | 3,922 | 1.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,924 | 4,177 | 1.42 | +255 bearers (+6.5%) | Down 100 places |
| 2020 | #8,164 | 3,882 | 1.30 | -295 bearers (-7.1%) | Down 240 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Autrey surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #7,924 | #8,164 | -3.0% |
| Count | 4,177 | 3,882 | -7.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.42 | 1.30 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Autrey bearers went from 4,177 to 3,882 (-7.1% change). The surname moved down 240 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,924 to #8,164.
FAQ
Autrey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Autrey?
Name Census estimates that about 4,452 living Americans carry the surname Autrey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 76,989 residents.
How common is Autrey?
Autrey ranks #8,164 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.30 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,882 people with the surname Autrey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,452), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.3 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.30 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Autrey.
Has Autrey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Autrey went from 4,177 recorded bearers to 3,882. That is a decrease of 295 (-7.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,924 to #8,164.
What does the Census say about the background of Autrey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Autrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (5.5%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Autrey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.6% (2,973 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Autrey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.6%), Black (13.4%), Two or More Races (5.5%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Autrey (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Autrey mean?
An English surname of French origin, derived from the given name Aubrey, meaning "elf ruler" or "supernatural ruler." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Autrey (1.30 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the surname Autrey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.