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

Metcalf, 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 Metcalf surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Metcalf in America

Metcalf is the 1494th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Metcalf surname appeared 23,946 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 8 people would have the surname Metcalf.

We can also compare 2010 data for Metcalf 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 Metcalf

The surname Metcalf is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "mete" meaning food and "calf" meaning a small meadow or enclosure. It was originally an occupational name for someone who owned or worked on a farm or meadow where cattle were kept.

The name can be traced back to the 12th century, with early recordings including Willelmus Metecalfe in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1190 and Gilbert Metcalfe in the Assize Court Rolls of Lancashire in 1246. It was particularly prevalent in the northern counties of England, such as Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Westmorland.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England, there are several listings of places with names similar to Metcalf, such as Metecalvefeld and Metecalefeld, which may have been the origin of some early bearers of the name.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir Thomas Metcalfe (c. 1390-1473), a Member of Parliament for Yorkshire in the 15th century. Another notable figure was Roger Metcalf (c. 1520-1616), an English clergyman and playwright who wrote several plays performed at the court of Queen Elizabeth I.

In the 17th century, John Metcalf (1717-1810), known as "Blind Jack of Knaresborough", was a remarkable road builder and engineer who constructed several roads and bridges in Yorkshire despite being blind from childhood.

Other notable individuals with the surname include James Metcalf (1789-1846), an English actor and theatre manager, and Sir Charles Metcalfe (1785-1846), a British colonial administrator who served as Governor-General of India from 1835 to 1836.

The surname Metcalf has also been found in various spellings over the centuries, including Metcalfe, Metcalf, Mettcalfe, and Mettcalf, reflecting the changing pronunciations and regional variations in different parts of England.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Metcalf

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

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

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

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