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

Major, 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 Major surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Major in America

Major is the 1714th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Major surname appeared 20,977 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 7 people would have the surname Major.

We can also compare 2010 data for Major 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 Major

The surname Major is of English origin, derived from the Latin word 'major', meaning 'greater' or 'superior'. It emerged as an occupational surname in medieval times, initially used to refer to a person who held a position of authority or rank.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be traced back to the 13th century in various English counties, such as Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 and the Subsidy Rolls of 1327 contain references to individuals bearing the name Major or its variants, like le Mair or Mair.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was Geoffrey le Mair, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Cambridgeshire in 1230. Another notable individual was John le Maire, a merchant from York, whose name appeared in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1301.

The surname Major was sometimes derived from place names, such as Major's Green in Hertfordshire or Major's Croft in Yorkshire. These place names likely originated from individuals with the occupational surname Major who lived or owned land in those areas.

Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the surname Major. One of the most prominent was Sir Thomas Major (c. 1469-1550), an English cartographer and scholar who produced influential works on geography and navigation. Another notable bearer was Richard Major (c. 1635-1722), an English philosopher and theologian who served as a Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge.

In the 18th century, John Major (1698-1779) was a British army officer who served as a Major-General during the French and Indian War. He played a significant role in the capture of Havana in 1762.

In the 19th century, Richard Henry Major (1818-1891) was a respected British geographer and writer who served as the Keeper of Maps and Plans at the British Museum. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

More recently, John Major (born 1943) served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1990 to 1997, leading the Conservative Party during a tumultuous period in British politics.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Major

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

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

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

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