2000
#148,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Matrious
A Greek surname potentially derived from the word "meter" meaning mother.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Matrious. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Matrious surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Matrious in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Matrious, the largest self-reported group is American Indian/Alaska Native at 50.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (28.8%) and White (18.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Matrious
The surname MATRIOUS is believed to have originated in the ancient region of Gaul, which is modern-day France and parts of neighboring countries. It dates back to the 5th century AD, during the Gallo-Roman period when the region was transitioning from Roman rule to the rise of the Franks.
MATRIOUS is thought to be derived from the Latin word "matrius," meaning "maternal" or "motherly." It may have been used as a nickname or descriptive name for someone who exhibited nurturing or maternal qualities. Alternatively, it could have been a name given to someone who lived near a church or establishment dedicated to the Virgin Mary.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name MATRIOUS can be found in the Cartulaire de l'abbaye de Saint-Père de Chartres, a medieval manuscript dating back to the 11th century. The name is listed as "Matriosius," a variant spelling, in relation to a landowner in the region of Chartres, France.
In the 12th century, a notable figure named Guillelmus MATRIOUS was a prominent clergyman and scholar in the city of Paris. He is mentioned in several ecclesiastical records from that era, though his exact birth and death dates are uncertain.
During the 14th century, a family by the name of MATRIOUS lived in the village of Saintes, in the Charente-Maritime region of western France. Historical records from that time period reference a Jean MATRIOUS, who was a local landowner and vintner, born around 1320.
In the 16th century, a renowned French philosopher and humanist scholar named Pierre MATRIOUS (1499-1563) gained recognition for his writings on ethics and moral philosophy. He was born in the town of Montpellier and spent much of his life teaching at the University of Paris.
Another notable figure with this surname was Marguerite MATRIOUS (1615-1689), a French noblewoman and patron of the arts. She was born in the Château de Chambord and is known for her support of writers, artists, and intellectuals during the reign of Louis XIV.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Matrious
Among Census respondents with the surname Matrious, the largest self-reported group is American Indian/Alaska Native at 50.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (28.8%) and White (18.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Matrious bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Matrious surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- American Indian and Alaska Native50.0% · 59
- Two or more races28.8% · 34
- White18.6% · 22
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Matrious
Matrious appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-1 bearers (-1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 11,468 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+17 bearers (+16.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 16,201 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #148,244 | 102 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | -1 bearers (-1.0%) | Down 11,468 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +17 bearers (+16.8%) | Up 16,201 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Matrious surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #159,712 | #143,511 | 10.1% |
| Count | 101 | 118 | 16.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 31.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Matrious bearers went from 101 to 118 (+16.8% change). The surname moved up 16,201 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #143,511.
FAQ
Matrious surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Matrious?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Matrious. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Matrious?
Matrious ranks #143,511 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 118 people with the surname Matrious. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Matrious.
Has Matrious become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Matrious went from 101 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 17 (+16.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Matrious?
Among Census respondents with the surname Matrious, the largest self-reported group is American Indian/Alaska Native at 50.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (28.8%) and White (18.6%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
American Indian/Alaska Native is the largest self-reported group for the surname Matrious in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.0% (59 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Matrious appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are American Indian/Alaska Native (50.0%), Two or More Races (28.8%), White (18.6%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Matrious (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Matrious mean?
A Greek surname potentially derived from the word "meter" meaning mother. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Matrious (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Matrious?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.