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

Merritt, 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 Merritt surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Merritt in America

Merritt is the 756th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Merritt surname appeared 45,594 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 15 people would have the surname Merritt.

We can also compare 2010 data for Merritt 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 Merritt

The surname Merritt is of English origin, traced back to the medieval period. It is a habitational name derived from the Old English words "mere" meaning a lake or pool, and "hyht" meaning a spit of land or lookout point. Originally, it denoted someone who lived by a spit of land projecting into a lake or pool.

The name is found in various spellings in early historical records, such as Merriot, Meriet, and Meriott. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Willelmus de Meritot, recorded in the Hundredorum Rolls of Norfolk in 1273.

The Merritt surname is also associated with several place names in England, including Merriott in Somerset, Meriot in Wiltshire, and Meriet in Devon. These locations likely contributed to the spread of the name across different regions.

In the 14th century, the name appeared in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire, where a Thomas Meriet was recorded in 1327. The Merritt family was also well-established in Kent, with records showing a John Meryott in the Kent Feet of Fines in 1509.

Notable individuals with the surname Merritt throughout history include:

1. Hugh Merritt (c. 1550-1621), an English navigator and explorer who voyaged to the West Indies and South America.
2. Thomas Merritt (1661-1738), an English Quaker and early settler in Pennsylvania, who founded the town of Merrittown (now Douglassville).
3. Wesley Merritt (1836-1910), a cavalry commander in the American Civil War and later a general in the United States Army.
4. Anna Lea Merritt (1844-1930), an American novelist and writer known for her historical romances set in medieval England.
5. Charles Merritt (1875-1956), a Canadian businessman and co-founder of the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto.

The Merritt surname has a rich history spanning centuries, originating from the English landscape and eventually spreading across different regions and even continents, carried by notable individuals in various fields.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Merritt

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

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

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

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