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

Farquhar, 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 Farquhar surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Farquhar in America

Farquhar is the 11584th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Farquhar surname appeared 2,714 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Farquhar.

We can also compare 2010 data for Farquhar 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 Farquhar

The surname Farquhar has its origins in the Gaelic language, originally stemming from the Scottish Highlands. It is derived from the Gaelic words "fear" meaning "man" and "cuaire" meaning "pail or vessel". Together, the words transliterate to "man of the pail" or "brewer".

This surname first appeared in historical records around the 13th century, with a mention of a John Ferchor in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a collection of homage renderings to King Edward I of England. The name is also found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from 1366, referring to a Donald Farchare.

The Farquhar surname is closely associated with the clans of the Scottish Highlands, particularly the Clan Farquharson. This clan traces its roots back to the 12th century and the area of Braemar in Aberdeenshire. The name Farquharson is believed to be a patronymic form of Farquhar.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Farquhar surname was Sir Walter Farquhar, a Scottish knight who lived in the 15th century. He fought alongside King James IV of Scotland at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. Another notable figure was Sir Robert Farquhar, a British colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Mauritius from 1810 to 1823.

In the 17th century, a prominent bearer of the name was Sir John Farquhar, a Scottish merchant and politician who served as the Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1677 to 1679. He was knighted by King Charles II in 1677.

The Farquhar surname also has a connection to literary history. George Farquhar (1678-1707) was an Irish playwright and satirist, known for his comedic works such as "The Beaux' Stratagem" and "The Recruiting Officer".

Another notable individual with this surname was Sir Walter Farquhar, 1st Baronet (1810-1891), a British doctor who served as the Physician-in-Ordinary to Queen Victoria. He was also a prolific writer on medical topics and was knighted in 1859.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Farquhar

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

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

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

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