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

Flight, 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 Flight surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Flight in America

Flight is the 50659th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Flight surname appeared 412 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 Flight.

We can also compare 2010 data for Flight 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 Flight

The surname Flight originated in England during the late medieval period, deriving from the Old English word 'fleogan' meaning 'to fly'. It is thought to have been an occupational name for someone who was a skilled archer or who worked with birds of prey.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, where a John le Flighte is mentioned. This early spelling variation highlights the name's evolution over time.

During the 14th century, the surname appears in various records across different counties in England. In 1327, a Thomas Flight is recorded in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire. Additionally, the Placita de Quo Warranto from 1346 lists a William Flyght from Warwickshire.

The name is also linked to several place names in England, such as Flight Hill in Somerset and Flight's Green in Cambridgeshire. These locations may have been named after individuals bearing the surname or could have influenced the adoption of the name by local residents.

Notable individuals with the surname Flight include Sir Walter Flight (c.1570-1640), an English diplomat and politician who served as a Member of Parliament during the reign of King Charles I. Another prominent figure was Vincent Joseph Flight (1790-1864), a British engraver and printmaker renowned for his landscape etchings.

In the literary world, John Flight (1786-1854) was an English novelist and poet, best known for his work "The Village Curate" published in 1824. Additionally, William Watts Flight (1826-1892) was a prominent English architect and designer who contributed significantly to the Gothic Revival style in the 19th century.

Moving into the 20th century, Sir Armine Woodhouse Flight (1884-1962) was a British civil servant and diplomat who served as the Governor of Bombay Province in British India from 1937 to 1942.

Throughout its history, the surname Flight has maintained a strong presence in various regions of England, reflecting its origins as an occupational name associated with skilled archers or those working with birds of prey.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Flight

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

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

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

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