Find out how popular the last name Butterly is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Butterly.
A surname potentially derived from the Old English word "butere," meaning one who prepared or sold butter.
Butterly, 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 Butterly surname is from the 2010 census data.
Butterly is the 66164th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Butterly surname appeared 299 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 Butterly.
We can also compare 2010 data for Butterly 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 | 66164 | 69428 | -4.81% |
| Count | 299 | 264 | 12.43% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.10 | 0.10 | 0.00% |
The surname Butterly originated in England, specifically in the northern counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire, during the late medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "butor" and "leah," meaning "bittern" (a type of heron) and "meadow" or "clearing," respectively. Consequently, the name likely referred to someone who lived near a meadow or clearing where bitterns were commonly found.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Lancashire Inquests of 1311, where a John de Butterlagh is mentioned. This spelling variation suggests that the name was originally a locational surname, referring to a specific place called "Butterleigh" or something similar.
In the 15th century, the name appears in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in Yorkshire, where a Richard Butterley is listed as a tenant in 1459. This spelling variation further supports the theory of the name's locational origin.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Butterly began to spread across various parts of England, with notable bearers including:
As the surname evolved, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Butterley, Butterly, Butterleigh, and Butterlie. These variations can be found in historical records and documents throughout the centuries.
In the 18th century, the name gained further prominence with the achievements of:
Over the centuries, the Butterly surname has been associated with numerous notable individuals across various fields, including arts, literature, commerce, and craftsmanship. While the name's exact origins may be obscure, its longevity and prevalence in historical records attest to its deep-rooted English heritage.
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Butterly.
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:
For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Butterly was:
| Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
|---|---|---|
| Non-Hispanic White Only | 95.32% | 285 |
| Non-Hispanic Black Only | 0.00% | 0 |
| Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.00% | 0 |
| Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | (S)% | (S) |
| Hispanic Origin | 4.01% | 12 |
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 Butterly has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
| 2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 95.32% | 93.94% | 1.46% |
| Black | 0.00% | (S)% | (S)% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Two or More Races | (S)% | 2.27% | (S)% |
| Hispanic | 4.01% | 3.41% | 16.17% |
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 Butterly was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
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