Grover last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Grover

An English occupational surname for a person who tended or managed a grove of trees.

Grover, 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 Grover surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Grover in America

Grover is the 2056th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Grover surname appeared 17,534 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Grover.

We can also compare 2010 data for Grover 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 2056 2010 2.26%
Count 17,534 16,551 5.77%
Proportion per 100k 5.94 6.14 -3.31%

The history of the last name Grover

The surname Grover has its origins in England, with records dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "grofere," which referred to a person who worked as a grove keeper or forester.

In medieval times, the role of a grove keeper was crucial, as they were responsible for maintaining and protecting the woodlands and forests, which were often owned by wealthy landowners or the Crown. The name Grover likely originated as an occupational surname, given to individuals who held this profession.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Grover can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275, where a certain Robert le Grover is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use by the late 13th century.

The name Grover has also been linked to various place names in England, such as Grover's Hill in Oxfordshire and Grover's Lane in Buckinghamshire. These place names may have contributed to the development of the surname, as individuals were often identified by the area they resided in or originated from.

In the 14th century, the Grover surname appeared in the Hundred Rolls of Norfolk, a record of landowners and tenants in the region. This further solidifies the presence of the name in medieval England.

One notable figure bearing the Grover surname was Sir Thomas Grover, a prominent English landowner and politician who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He served as a Member of Parliament for Warwickshire in 1604.

Another significant individual was John Grover, an English Puritan minister who immigrated to New England in the 17th century. He served as the minister of the First Church of Beverley in Massachusetts from 1649 until his death in 1687.

In the literary world, Andrew Grover was an English writer and translator who lived in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. He is best known for his translations of classical Greek and Latin works.

Moving into the 19th century, Thomas Grover was a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Waterloo Road and the former Royal Mint building on Tower Hill.

Lastly, Alfred Grover was a prominent English cricketer who played for Surrey and the Marylebone Cricket Club in the late 19th century. He was born in 1857 and played in several high-profile matches during his career.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Grover

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

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 Grover was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 82.01% 14,380
Non-Hispanic Black Only 6.13% 1,075
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 6.63% 1,163
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.92% 161
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.95% 342
Hispanic Origin 2.37% 416

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 Grover has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 82.01% 85.90% -4.63%
Black 6.13% 6.10% 0.49%
Asian and Pacific Islander 6.63% 4.05% 48.31%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.92% 0.90% 2.20%
Two or More Races 1.95% 1.58% 20.96%
Hispanic 2.37% 1.47% 46.88%

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

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

Reference this page

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"Grover last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 4, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/grover-surname-popularity/.

"Grover last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/grover-surname-popularity/. Accessed 4 December, 2024

Grover last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/grover-surname-popularity/.

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