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

Friday, 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 Friday surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Friday in America

Friday is the 5029th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Friday surname appeared 6,980 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Friday.

We can also compare 2010 data for Friday 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 Friday

The surname FRIDAY is of English origin, deriving from the Old English word "frigedæg," which means "day of Frigg," referring to the Germanic goddess Frigg or Freyja. This name was given to those born on the sixth day of the week or to those who lived near a place associated with the goddess.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname FRIDAY can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions a landowner named Frederic in Gloucestershire. The name was also prevalent in various medieval records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire, where a Robert Fridai was mentioned in 1195.

During the 13th century, the surname FRIDAY was particularly common in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex, where it was often associated with place names like Fridaybridge and Fridaythorpe. In the 14th century, the name appeared in various forms, including Fridaye, Fryday, and Fryedaye.

One notable bearer of the FRIDAY surname was Sir John Friday (c. 1520-1589), a wealthy merchant and benefactor from Norfolk who endowed several local charities and schools. Another prominent figure was Samuel Friday (1615-1684), a Puritan minister and author from Cambridgeshire, known for his work "Disquisitions on the Law and Gospel."

In the 17th century, the surname FRIDAY was found in various parts of England, including London, where a Richard Friday was recorded as a merchant in 1635. The name was also present in the American colonies, with one of the earliest recorded instances being William Friday (c. 1635-1697), a Quaker from Wiltshire who settled in Pennsylvania.

Other notable individuals with the FRIDAY surname include John Friday (1742-1828), a British naval officer who served in the American Revolutionary War, and Samuel Friday (1804-1868), an English architect and surveyor who designed several churches and public buildings in London.

While the surname FRIDAY has its roots in England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, particularly through migration and colonial expansion. However, its origins can be traced back to the Old English language and the veneration of the Germanic goddess Frigg or Freyja.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Friday

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

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

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

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