2010
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Measures
Derived from an occupational term for a land surveyor or measurer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Measures. That puts it at #151,639 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,786,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Measures 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Measures with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
123
1 in 2,786,621
Census rank
#151,639
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
107
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 107 bearers of the surname Measures in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 151639th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Measures, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.6%) and Black (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Measures
The surname MEASURES is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to have derived from the Old English word "meter" or "metere," which referred to a person who measured or kept track of goods and commodities.
In the 13th and 14th centuries, the name appears in various historical records, such as the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire from 1279, which mentions a John le Metere. The Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296 also list a William le Meter.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the surname MEASURES dates back to 1327, when a Richard le Metre is mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire. During this time, the name was often spelled in different ways, including Meter, Meater, and Metter.
The surname MEASURES is also found in the famous Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landowners and tenants in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The book lists a landowner named Radulfus Meter in Somerset.
Several notable individuals throughout history have borne the surname MEASURES. One example is William Measures (1572-1648), an English clergyman and author who served as the Archdeacon of Taunton and wrote several religious works.
Another prominent figure was John Measures (1622-1683), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis from 1660 to 1679.
In the 18th century, Robert Measures (1732-1808) was a renowned English watchmaker and inventor who contributed to the development of chronometers and other timepieces.
During the 19th century, James Measures (1828-1898) was a British artist known for his landscape and genre paintings, while William Measures (1839-1919) was a prominent Canadian businessman and politician who served as the Mayor of Ottawa from 1899 to 1900.
The surname MEASURES has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Measures Bank in Yorkshire and Measures Green in Hertfordshire, suggesting that individuals with this surname may have lived or worked in these locations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Measures
Among Census respondents with the surname Measures, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.6%) and Black (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Measures 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 Measures surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 96
- Hispanic or Latino5.6% · 6
- Black or African American1.9% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 2
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Measures
Measures appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-7 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,419 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 6,419 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 Measures 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 | #145,220 | #151,639 | -4.4% |
| Count | 114 | 107 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Measures bearers went from 114 to 107 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 6,419 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #151,639.
FAQ
Measures surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Measures?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Measures. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Measures?
Measures ranks #151,639 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 107 people with the surname Measures. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (123), 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 Measures.
Has Measures become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Measures went from 114 recorded bearers to 107. That is a decrease of 7 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Measures?
Among Census respondents with the surname Measures, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.6%) and Black (1.9%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Measures in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Measures appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Hispanic (5.6%), Black (1.9%). 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 Measures (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 Measures mean?
Derived from an occupational term for a land surveyor or measurer. 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 Measures (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 common is the surname Measures?
Find out how many people have the last name Measures on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.