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

Main, 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 Main surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Main in America

Main is the 2824th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Main surname appeared 12,776 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname Main.

We can also compare 2010 data for Main 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 Main

The surname MAIN is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "maene" or "gemæne", which means "common" or "public". This name was likely given to someone who lived on a common or shared land.

The earliest recorded use of the surname MAIN dates back to the 13th century in the county of Yorkshire, England. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 mention a Thomas de la Mayne, which is an early spelling variation of the name.

During the 14th century, the name appeared in various records across different regions of England. The Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327 list a Robert le Mayne, while the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1332 mention a John le Mayne.

In the 15th century, the surname MAIN began to appear in its modern spelling. The Feet of Fines for Essex in 1488 includes a reference to a John Mayn, and the Subsidy Rolls of Suffolk from 1524 list a Thomas Mayn.

Historically, the surname MAIN has been associated with several notable individuals. Sir John Main (1459-1516) was a Member of Parliament for Gloucestershire during the reign of Henry VIII. Thomas Main (1586-1653) was an English clergyman and author who wrote a commentary on the Book of Revelation.

Another notable figure was William Main (1615-1695), an English Puritan minister and author who served as a chaplain during the English Civil War. John Main (1605-1678) was a Scottish mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the development of logarithms.

In the 18th century, George Main (1730-1803) was a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. He later became a Member of Parliament for Ipswich.

As the surname spread across different regions, local variations and spellings emerged, such as Mane, Mayne, and Mayn. These variations often reflected the local dialects and pronunciations of the name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Main

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

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

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

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