Hazard last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Hazard

An occupational surname referring to a person who played games of chance or worked in a dangerous profession.

Hazard, 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 Hazard surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Hazard in America

Hazard is the 8176th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Hazard surname appeared 4,054 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Hazard.

We can also compare 2010 data for Hazard 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 8176 7782 4.94%
Count 4,054 3,937 2.93%
Proportion per 100k 1.37 1.46 -6.36%

The history of the last name Hazard

The surname HAZARD originated in France during the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old French word "hasard," meaning "chance" or "risk." The name likely originated as a descriptive surname, referring to someone who took risks or lived a hazardous lifestyle.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the HAZARD surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire, England, from 1202, where a Robert Hasard is mentioned. In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various spellings, such as Hazart, Hasard, and Hassard, in records across Normandy and England.

The HAZARD surname has a long history in England, with notable individuals carrying the name. In the 14th century, Sir Robert Hazard served as a member of parliament for Northampton in 1376. During the 15th century, William Hazard was a prominent landowner in Norfolk, England.

In the 16th century, the HAZARD surname became more widespread across England and the American colonies. One of the earliest recorded instances in the colonies is Thomas Hazard, who settled in Rhode Island in 1635 and is considered the ancestor of many Hazard families in the United States.

Notable individuals with the HAZARD surname include:

  1. Geoffrey Hazard (1737-1820), an English politician and member of parliament for Norfolk.
  2. Ebenezer Hazard (1744-1817), an American publisher and historian, known for his work on the historical collections of Pennsylvania.
  3. Caroline Hazard (1856-1945), an American educator and philanthropist, who founded the Hazard Memorial School in Rhode Island.
  4. Paul Hazard (1878-1944), a French literary critic and historian, recognized for his work on the history of ideas and the Enlightenment.
  5. Solly Hazard (1901-1967), an American baseball player who played for the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees in the 1920s.

The HAZARD surname has a rich history spanning several centuries and can be traced back to its French origins. It has been carried by notable individuals in various fields, including politics, literature, education, and sports, across different parts of the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Hazard

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

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 Hazard was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 76.42% 3,098
Non-Hispanic Black Only 10.83% 439
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.99% 40
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 3.85% 156
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 4.32% 175
Hispanic Origin 3.60% 146

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 76.42% 79.93% -4.49%
Black 10.83% 9.91% 8.87%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.99% 0.41% 82.86%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 3.85% 3.66% 5.06%
Two or More Races 4.32% 3.48% 21.54%
Hispanic 3.60% 2.62% 31.51%

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

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

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"Hazard last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 14, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/hazard-surname-popularity/.

"Hazard last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/hazard-surname-popularity/. Accessed 14 October, 2024

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

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