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

Elion, 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 Elion surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Elion in America

Elion is the 75799th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Elion surname appeared 254 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 Elion.

We can also compare 2010 data for Elion 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 Elion

The surname ELION originated in the Brittany region of northwestern France during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word 'eillion,' which means 'hill' or 'rising ground.' This suggests that the name may have been initially given to someone who resided near a prominent hill or elevated area.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the ELION surname can be found in the Latin form 'de Elion' in a 13th-century cartulary from the Abbey of Beauport in Brittany. This document mentions a landowner named Robertus de Elion, indicating that the name was already in use by that time.

The ELION surname has also been linked to the place name Illion, a small commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department of Brittany. It is possible that early bearers of the surname hailed from this locality or a similarly named place.

In the 15th century, a notable figure named Jean Elion was recorded as a merchant and alderman in the city of Rennes, the capital of Brittany. He lived during the turbulent period of the Breton War of Succession, which saw the duchy of Brittany embroiled in a conflict over its inheritance.

During the 16th century, the ELION surname spread beyond Brittany to other parts of France. One notable bearer was Mathieu Elion, a French Protestant theologian and writer who lived from 1546 to 1616. He was known for his polemical works defending the Huguenot cause during the French Wars of Religion.

In the 17th century, the ELION surname made its way to England, where it was recorded in various spellings such as Ellion and Eliion. One early bearer in England was John Ellion, a merchant from London who was granted a coat of arms in 1678.

Another significant figure with the ELION surname was Gertrude Elion, an American biochemist and pharmacologist who lived from 1918 to 1999. She won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1988 for her pioneering work in developing life-saving drugs for the treatment of various diseases, including leukemia, gout, and organ transplant rejection.

Throughout its history, the ELION surname has been carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds, ranging from landowners and merchants to scholars and scientists. While its origins can be traced back to the hills of medieval Brittany, the name has since spread across different regions and cultures, reflecting the mobility and adaptability of human populations over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Elion

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

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

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

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