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

Boatright, 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 Boatright surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Boatright in America

Boatright is the 6062nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Boatright surname appeared 5,659 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Boatright.

We can also compare 2010 data for Boatright 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 Boatright

The surname Boatright originates from England and dates back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "bat" meaning boat and "riht" meaning right or privilege. This suggests the name may have been given to someone who had the right or privilege to operate or own a boat, perhaps for fishing or transportation purposes.

The earliest recorded instance of the name appears in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, where it is spelled "Baterihte". Similar spellings like "Batright" and "Bateright" can be found in various medieval records across England.

In the Hundred Rolls of 1273, a man named John Baterihte is listed as residing in Lincolnshire. This is one of the earliest known individuals to bear the name.

The Boatright surname is also associated with certain place names in England. For example, the village of Boatright in Derbyshire likely took its name from the surname, indicating that a family with this name may have resided there or owned land in the area.

One notable individual with the Boatright surname was Sir William Boatright (1542-1612), a prominent merchant and member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers in London during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

Another person of historical significance was John Boatright (1677-1743), a wealthy landowner and member of Parliament for the county of Essex in the early 18th century.

In the 19th century, Sarah Boatright (1814-1892) was a well-known author and advocate for women's rights, publishing several influential works on the subject.

Edward Boatright (1861-1923) was a respected scholar and professor of English literature at Columbia University in New York.

Lastly, James Boatright (1901-1977) was a renowned folklorist and author who made significant contributions to the study of American folklore and published numerous books on the subject.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Boatright

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

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

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

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