Matthewson last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Matthewson

Son of Matthew, derived from the Hebrew name Mattityahu meaning "gift of God".

Matthewson, 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 Matthewson surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Matthewson in America

Matthewson is the 41728th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Matthewson surname appeared 521 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Matthewson.

We can also compare 2010 data for Matthewson 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.

20102000Change (%)
Rank4172843798-4.84%
Count52146411.57%
Proportion per 100k0.180.175.71%

The history of the last name Matthewson

The surname Matthewson has its origins in England. It is a patronymic surname, meaning it was originally derived from the given name of an ancestor. In this case, Matthewson indicates "son of Matthew." The name Matthew itself comes from the Hebrew name Mattityahu, which means "gift of Yahweh."

The earliest known record of the surname Matthewson dates back to the late 12th century in Yorkshire, England. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname was William Matthewson, who was mentioned in the Chartulary of Rievaulx Abbey in 1195.

In the 13th century, the surname Matthewson appears in various historical records across northern England, particularly in Yorkshire and Northumberland. For instance, a Robert Matthewson was recorded in the Assize Rolls of Northumberland in 1279.

The Matthewson surname can also be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which were census-like records of landholders in England. One notable entry is that of Thomas Matthewson, who was listed as a landholder in the county of Yorkshire.

During the Middle Ages, the surname Matthewson was sometimes spelled with variations such as Mathewson, Mathison, and Matthison. These different spellings were common due to the lack of standardized spelling conventions at the time.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Matthewson surname to achieve historical significance was John Matthewson, a member of the Parliament of England who represented the city of York in the mid-15th century.

Another notable individual with this surname was Sir Richard Matthewson, who lived during the late 16th century and served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1585. He was a successful merchant and played a role in the establishment of the East India Company.

In the 17th century, the Matthewson surname spread further across England, with records showing bearers of the name in various counties, including Lincolnshire, Derbyshire, and Nottinghamshire. One prominent figure from this period was William Matthewson, a scholar and author who wrote several works on theology and philosophy.

Other notable individuals with the surname Matthewson include George Matthewson, a 19th-century Scottish inventor and engineer who made significant contributions to the development of the steam engine, and James Matthewson, a British soldier who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and later wrote memoirs about his experiences.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Matthewson

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

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 Matthewson was:

Race/EthnicityPercentageTotal Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only70.44%367
Non-Hispanic Black Only24.57%128
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races1.15%6
Hispanic Origin2.50%13

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

20102000Change (%)
White70.44%71.77%-1.87%
Black24.57%22.84%7.30%
Asian and Pacific Islander(S)%(S)%(S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native(S)%(S)%(S)%
Two or More Races1.15%2.59%-77.01%
Hispanic2.50%1.29%63.85%

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

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

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