2000
#137,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Meattey
An English surname derived from the Old French word "mettier" meaning "occupation" or "profession."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 133 Americans carry the last name Meattey. That puts it at #145,028 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,577,100 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Meattey 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
133
1 in 2,577,100
Census rank
#145,028
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
116
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 116 bearers of the surname Meattey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145028th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Meattey, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Meattey
The surname MEATTEY is of English origin, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to have originated in the county of Essex, where it was derived from a locational surname referring to a place called Metty or Meattey. This place name is thought to have derived from the Old English words "mæt" meaning "food" and "ey" meaning "island" or "raised ground."
The earliest recorded instance of the surname MEATTEY can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Essex from the year 1196, where a person named Robertus de Metty is mentioned. This suggests that the surname was already in use by the late 12th century.
In the 13th century, a variant spelling of the surname, "Mette," is found in the Feet of Fines records for Essex in the year 1242. This record mentions a person named Richard de Mette.
During the 14th century, the surname MEATTEY appears to have spread beyond Essex. In the Subsidy Rolls of Cambridgeshire from 1327, a person named John Mettey is recorded.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname MEATTEY was Sir William Meattey (1480-1546), a prominent landowner and member of the gentry in Essex. He served as a Member of Parliament for the county in the 1530s.
Another notable figure was John Meattey (1550-1621), an English clergyman who served as the rector of St. Mary's Church in Chelmsford, Essex, from 1590 until his death.
In the 17th century, the surname MEATTEY is recorded in the parish records of St. Clement Danes in London, where a marriage between William Meattey and Mary Smith is recorded in 1642.
During the 18th century, the MEATTEY family appears to have had a presence in the county of Suffolk. Parish records from Bury St. Edmunds mention a baptism of a child named Sarah Meattey in 1732.
One of the most notable individuals with the surname MEATTEY was Sir George Meattey (1760-1835), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars. He was knighted for his service and rose to the rank of Vice Admiral.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Meattey
Among Census respondents with the surname Meattey, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Meattey 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 Meattey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.8% · 110
- Two or more races3.4% · 4
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Meattey
Meattey 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+3 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,325 places
2020
#145,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 887 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #137,816 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 6,325 places |
| 2020 | #145,028 | 116 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 887 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 Meattey 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 | #144,141 | #145,028 | -0.6% |
| Count | 115 | 116 | 0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Meattey bearers went from 115 to 116 (+0.9% change). The surname moved down 887 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #145,028.
FAQ
Meattey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Meattey?
Name Census estimates that about 133 living Americans carry the surname Meattey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,577,100 residents.
How common is Meattey?
Meattey ranks #145,028 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 116 people with the surname Meattey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (133), 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 Meattey.
Has Meattey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Meattey went from 115 recorded bearers to 116. That is an increase of 1 (+0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #145,028.
What does the Census say about the background of Meattey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Meattey, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Black (0.9%). 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 Meattey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.8% (110 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Meattey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.8%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Black (0.9%). 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 Meattey (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 Meattey mean?
An English surname derived from the Old French word "mettier" meaning "occupation" or "profession." 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 Meattey (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 Meattey?
If you just want to know how common the surname Meattey is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.