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

Gleave, 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 Gleave surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gleave in America

Gleave is the 32169th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gleave surname appeared 717 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 Gleave.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gleave 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 Gleave

The surname Gleave originated in the North West of England, primarily in the counties of Lancashire and Cheshire during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Old English words "glof" meaning a glove and "hough" meaning a ridge, likely referring to a glove-shaped ridge or hill.

One of the earliest records of the name Gleave can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled as "Gloave". This suggests that the name was already established in the region during the Norman Conquest.

In the 13th century, the name appears in various forms such as "de Glove", "del Glove", and "atte Glove" in local records and charters. These variations reflect the Norman-French influence on English surnames during this period.

The first recorded instance of the name Gleave in its current spelling dates back to 1332, when a Richard de Gleave was listed in the Cheshire Chamberlain's accounts. This indicates that the name had evolved into its modern form by the 14th century.

Several place names in Lancashire and Cheshire are associated with the Gleave surname, including Gleave Hill in Woodplumpton and Gleave Wood in Winwick. These locations may have been named after early bearers of the surname or vice versa.

Notable individuals with the surname Gleave throughout history include:

1. John Gleave (c. 1599-1670), an English clergyman and puritan minister who served as the rector of Malpas in Cheshire.

2. Richard Gleave (1630-1688), an English lawyer and politician who served as the Member of Parliament for Newton in Lancashire.

3. Samuel Gleave (1735-1794), a prominent English industrialist and entrepreneur who established a successful textile business in Manchester.

4. James Gleave (1809-1889), a British architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings in Liverpool and Manchester.

5. William Gleave (1869-1957), an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Lancashire County Cricket Club in the late 19th century.

The Gleave surname has endured for centuries, with its origins deeply rooted in the historical landscape of North West England, where it emerged and flourished during the medieval and early modern periods.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gleave

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!