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

Mayor, 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 Mayor surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mayor in America

Mayor is the 12636th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mayor surname appeared 2,450 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 Mayor.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mayor 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 Mayor

The surname Mayor is of English origin and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is an occupational name derived from the Old French word "mair" or "maire," which in turn comes from the Latin "maior" meaning "greater" or "superior." This term was used to denote a high-ranking official or administrator, often the chief magistrate of a town or city.

In medieval England, the Mayor was a prominent figure who held significant authority and presided over civic affairs. The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in various historical documents, such as the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where a Robert le Mair is mentioned in Cambridgeshire.

The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landholdings commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the surname Mayor. However, it does record individuals with similar occupational titles, such as "praepositus" (reeve) or "baillivus" (bailiff), which were precursors to the role of Mayor.

During the 13th and 14th centuries, the surname Mayor became more widespread, particularly in urban areas where the office of Mayor held greater significance. Notable individuals bearing this surname include William Mayor (c. 1460-1501), a Member of Parliament for the city of Norwich during the reign of Henry VII, and Sir Richard Mayor (1530-1610), a wealthy merchant and Lord Mayor of London in 1590.

In the 16th century, the surname Mayor was also found in various spellings, such as Mayer, Mayre, and Maire, reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions. One prominent figure from this era was Sir John Mayor (1528-1599), a merchant and philanthropist who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1571.

In later centuries, the surname Mayor continued to be associated with individuals in positions of authority and leadership. John Mayor (1670-1745) was a Scottish mathematician and professor at the University of St Andrews, while Joseph Mayor (1801-1858) was an English clergyman and Master of St John's College, Cambridge.

Other notable individuals with the surname Mayor include Richard Mayor (1885-1962), a British actor and playwright, and Federico Adolfo Gutiérrez Mayor (1914-1944), a Colombian pilot who served in the Royal Air Force during World War II and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his bravery.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mayor

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

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

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

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