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

Cager, 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 Cager surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cager in America

Cager is the 45105th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cager surname appeared 475 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 Cager.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cager 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 Cager

The surname Cager is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period, specifically in the county of Northumberland. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "cæger," which means "key-keeper" or "gatekeeper." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname may have held positions as keepers of keys or gates, possibly in a castle or manor.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Cager surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Northumberland, dated around 1195. These were financial records kept by the English Exchequer, and they mention a person named Willelmus le Cagere, which translates to "William the Gatekeeper."

Another early reference to the Cager surname appears in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which were census-like records compiled for taxation purposes. These rolls mention a John Cager residing in the village of Warkworth, Northumberland.

During the 14th century, the Cager surname began to spread beyond Northumberland to other parts of England. Records from this period include Richard Cagere, who was listed as a resident of Yorkshire in 1379, and Henry Cager, who was recorded in the Poll Tax returns of Cambridgeshire in 1381.

One notable individual bearing the Cager surname was Sir John Cager (1524-1592), who served as a member of the Privy Council under Queen Elizabeth I. He was a prominent statesman and diplomat during the Tudor period and played a significant role in the negotiations leading to the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis in 1559.

Another distinguished Cager was Robert Cager (1647-1719), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge from 1713 to 1719. He was also the master of Christ's College, Cambridge, from 1711 until his death.

In the 18th century, the Cager surname appeared in various records across England, including parish registers and tax rolls. One such record mentions a William Cager, who was born in Lincolnshire in 1743 and later became a successful merchant in London.

The 19th century saw the Cager surname spread further across the British Isles, with bearers of the name found in Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. One notable individual from this period was James Cager (1819-1887), a Scottish inventor and engineer who patented several improvements to steam engine design.

As the Cager surname continued to disperse throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, it also began to appear in various regions of the United States and other parts of the world, likely due to immigration from the British Isles.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cager

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

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

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

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