Battey last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Battey

A habitational surname derived from a place in England.

Battey, 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 Battey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Battey in America

Battey is the 25535th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Battey surname appeared 967 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 Battey.

We can also compare 2010 data for Battey 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 25535 25448 0.34%
Count 967 913 5.74%
Proportion per 100k 0.33 0.34 -2.99%

The history of the last name Battey

The surname Battey has its origins in England, tracing back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "batt," meaning a small ridge or hill. This suggests that the name may have been initially a topographic name, given to someone who lived near a small hill or elevated land.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname Battey can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of Bedfordshire in 1273, where it appears as "William de la Batte." This indicates that the name was initially spelled with variations like "Batte" or "Batt" before evolving into its modern form.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are several references to places with similar names, such as "Batte" in Wiltshire and "Battelea" in Worcestershire. These place names may have contributed to the development of the surname Battey, as it was common for people to adopt surnames based on the places they lived or were associated with.

One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname Battey was John Battey (c. 1500-1572), an English merchant and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Lyme Regis in 1545. Another prominent figure was Sir Robert Battey (1600-1658), an English landowner and member of the Virginia Company, who played a role in the early colonization efforts of North America.

In the 17th century, the Battey surname gained prominence with the birth of William Battey (1629-1689), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Archdeacon of Lewes and was a fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford.

During the 18th century, the name appeared in various records, including the birth of John Battey (1745-1801), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the American Revolutionary War and the French Revolutionary Wars.

In the 19th century, one of the most notable individuals with the surname Battey was Robert Battey (1828-1895), an American surgeon who pioneered the surgical treatment of ovarian cysts and developed the Battey operation, a form of hysterectomy.

Throughout history, the Battey surname has been associated with various locations, including the village of Batley in West Yorkshire, England, which may have contributed to the name's spelling variations. While the name's origins can be traced back to England, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and settlement.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Battey

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

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 Battey was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 79.83% 772
Non-Hispanic Black Only 14.89% 144
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 1.65% 16
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin 2.07% 20

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 79.83% 81.71% -2.33%
Black 14.89% 13.14% 12.49%
Asian and Pacific Islander 1.65% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races (S)% 2.63% (S)%
Hispanic 2.07% 1.53% 30.00%

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

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

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Battey last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on May 2, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/battey-surname-popularity/.

"Battey last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/battey-surname-popularity/. Accessed 2 May, 2025

Battey last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/battey-surname-popularity/.

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