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

Cates, 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 Cates surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cates in America

Cates is the 1984th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cates surname appeared 18,190 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Cates.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cates 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 Cates

The surname CATES is of English origin, derived from a place name in the county of Gloucestershire. The name is believed to have originated in the 13th century from the Old English words "cæt" meaning "cat" and "hyll" meaning "hill," referring to a hill where wildcats were found.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1327, which mention a John de Cathull. This spelling variation suggests that the name was initially associated with a particular location before evolving into its modern form.

In the 15th century, the name appeared in various records, including the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1446, which listed a Robert Cathull. During this period, the name was also found in other counties, such as Somerset and Wiltshire, indicating that families bearing the name had begun to spread across different regions.

Notable individuals with the surname CATES include:

1. John Cates (c. 1480-1545), an English merchant and alderman of London, who served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1542-1543.

2. William Cates (c. 1550-1617), an English scholar and clergyman, who was the Regius Professor of Hebrew at the University of Cambridge from 1599 until his death.

3. Elizabeth Cates (1592-1654), an English Puritan settler in America, who was one of the first European women to give birth in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

4. Thomas Cates (1677-1746), a British naval officer who served as the Governor of the Bahamas from 1732 to 1734.

5. Mary Cates (1744-1821), a British author and poet, known for her work "The Village Curate," published in 1789.

While the CATES surname originated in a specific region of England, it has since spread globally and can be found in various countries, reflecting the migration patterns of families bearing this name throughout history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cates

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

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

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

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