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

Mete, 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 Mete surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mete in America

Mete is the 78567th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mete surname appeared 243 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Mete.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mete 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 Mete

The surname METE is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "mete," which means "measure" or "boundary." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who worked as a land surveyor or boundary marker.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name METE can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landowners and tenants in England compiled in 1086 by order of King William the Conqueror. The entry mentions a landowner named Ricardus Mete in the county of Lincolnshire.

By the 13th century, the surname had spread to various regions of England, with variations in spelling such as Mette, Meyte, and Meate appearing in historical records. One notable individual from this era was John Mete, a monk and chronicler who lived in the late 13th century and authored a chronicle of events in the Abbey of St. Albans.

During the 14th and 15th centuries, the METE surname became more prevalent, with records showing individuals bearing this name in counties like Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex. In the 16th century, a branch of the METE family settled in the village of Maidstone, Kent, where they held land and property.

One of the most prominent figures with the METE surname was Sir Thomas Mete, a wealthy merchant and alderman who lived in London during the late 16th and early 17th centuries (c. 1560-1635). He served as Lord Mayor of London in 1611 and was known for his philanthropic efforts, including funding the construction of almshouses for the poor.

Other notable individuals with the METE surname include Robert Mete (1582-1642), an English clergyman and writer who served as a chaplain to King James I, and Edward Mete (1658-1718), a mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the METE surname continued to be found throughout England, with some families also migrating to other parts of the British Empire, including Australia and North America. One example is John Mete (1789-1856), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and later settled in Canada.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mete

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

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

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

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