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

Ferry, 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 Ferry surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ferry in America

Ferry is the 3467th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ferry surname appeared 10,312 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname Ferry.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ferry 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 Ferry

The surname FERRY is of English origin and dates back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "ferian," which means "to carry" or "to transport." The name was originally an occupational name for a ferryman, someone who transported people and goods across rivers or bodies of water by boat or ferry.

The FERRY surname is found in various areas of England, particularly in counties with major rivers or waterways, such as Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Cambridgeshire. It is also prevalent in regions where ferry services were essential for transportation, like the coastal areas and islands.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the FERRY surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1194, where a person named Richard le Feryman is mentioned. The surname appears in various spellings throughout history, including Fery, Ferie, Ferrier, and Ferror.

The Domesday Book, a great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the FERRY surname. However, it does mention individuals with the occupation of "ferryman" or "nauta" (Latin for boatman).

Among notable individuals with the FERRY surname throughout history are:

1. Richard Ferris (c. 1510-1564), an English Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake during the Marian Persecutions.
2. Paul Ferry (1590-1669), a French Jesuit missionary and explorer who traveled extensively in North America and founded the first European settlement in what is now Michigan.
3. Eliza Sproat Turner Ferry (1801-1888), an American abolitionist and women's rights activist who played a significant role in the Underground Railroad.
4. Jules Ferry (1832-1893), a French statesman and Prime Minister who implemented important educational reforms and advocated for colonial expansion.
5. David Ferry (born 1924), an American poet, translator, and professor who has received numerous accolades, including the Rebekah Johnson Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry.

The FERRY surname has also been associated with various place names, such as Ferrybridge in Yorkshire, Ferryside in Carmarthenshire, Wales, and Ferry Farm in Virginia, USA, reflecting the occupation's significance in transportation and settlement patterns.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ferry

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

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

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

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