Bread last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Bread

A surname derived from the Old English word for bread, likely referring to a baker or someone involved in the bread trade.

Bread, 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 Bread surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bread in America

Bread is the 122314th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bread surname appeared 141 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 Bread.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bread 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 122314 99725 20.35%
Count 141 168 -17.48%
Proportion per 100k 0.05 0.06 -18.18%

The history of the last name Bread

The surname "BREAD" originates from England, with records dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "bread," which was a common occupation or trade name given to bakers or those involved in the production or selling of bread.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Huntingdonshire, dated 1273, where a William Bred is mentioned. The surname was also spelled as "Bred" or "Brede" in various historical records.

The name appears in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1301, which lists a John le Brede. This variation of the name, with the addition of the prefix "le," was a common practice in medieval times to indicate a person's occupation or trade.

In the 14th century, the surname is found in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield, where a Richard Brede is recorded in 1317. This suggests that the name was widespread in different regions of England during this period.

One notable individual bearing the surname "BREAD" was Sir John Bread (1495-1564), a prominent English merchant and member of the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers in London. He served as Sheriff of London in 1552 and is known for his contributions to the city's trade and commerce.

Another historical figure was Thomas Bread (1610-1671), an English clergyman and author who served as the Rector of Cripplegate Church in London. He published several religious works, including "The Doctrine of the Sabbath" in 1655.

In the 18th century, William Bread (1720-1791) was a notable architect and surveyor from Somerset, England. He designed several churches and buildings in the region, including the parish church of St. Mary in Redcliffe.

The surname also appears in Scotland, with records of a John Brede mentioned in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1456. This suggests that the name had spread beyond England by the 15th century.

Finally, one of the earliest known instances of the surname in North America is recorded in Virginia in the late 17th century, where a Thomas Bread is mentioned in a land grant from 1695.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bread

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

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 Bread was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 16.31% 23
Non-Hispanic Black Only 14.18% 20
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 63.12% 89
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin (S)% (S)

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 16.31% 20.83% -24.34%
Black 14.18% 8.33% 51.98%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 63.12% 64.88% -2.75%
Two or More Races (S)% 2.98% (S)%
Hispanic (S)% (S)% (S)%

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

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

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"Bread last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/bread-surname-popularity/.

"Bread last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/bread-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

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

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