Milkey last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Milkey

English surname likely derived from a location name containing the Old English words "miller" and "oak".

Milkey, 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 Milkey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Milkey in America

Milkey is the 75069th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Milkey surname appeared 257 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 Milkey.

We can also compare 2010 data for Milkey 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 75069 68172 9.63%
Count 257 270 -4.93%
Proportion per 100k 0.09 0.10 -10.53%

The history of the last name Milkey

The surname MILKEY has its origins in the British Isles, with the earliest recorded examples dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to have originated from the Old English word "milc," meaning milk, suggesting that the name may have been an occupational surname for someone who worked with dairy products or lived near a dairy farm.

The name MILKEY can be found in various historical records, including the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which lists a Thomas Milkey in Oxfordshire, England. Another early mention is in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1301, where a Robert Milkey is recorded.

During the medieval period, the name MILKEY appeared in various spellings, such as Milkey, Milkeye, and Milkie, reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions of the time. Some of these variations may have been influenced by the places where families bearing the name settled or originated.

One notable bearer of the MILKEY surname was Sir John Milkey (c. 1380-1451), a English knight and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament for Oxfordshire in the early 15th century. Another prominent individual was William Milkey (1634-1701), a Puritan minister and author from Massachusetts Bay Colony.

In Scotland, the MILKEY name can be traced back to the 16th century, with records showing a James Milkey in Edinburgh in 1567. The Scottish branch of the family may have had connections to the dairy industry or lived in an area known for its milk production.

Other notable individuals with the MILKEY surname include:

  1. Richard Milkey (1592-1670), an English merchant and member of the East India Company.
  2. Margaret Milkey (1718-1799), an Irish poet and playwright.
  3. Thomas Milkey (1795-1879), an English architect known for his work on churches and public buildings.
  4. Elizabeth Milkey (1856-1932), an American educator and suffragist.
  5. John Milkey (1902-1987), a Canadian politician and member of the House of Commons.

The MILKEY surname has a rich history, spanning several centuries and regions, with its origins rooted in the dairy industry and agriculture of the British Isles.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Milkey

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

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 Milkey was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 93.77% 241
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 1.95% 5
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin 3.50% 9

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 Milkey has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 93.77% 97.78% -4.19%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 1.95% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Two or More Races (S)% 0.00% (S)%
Hispanic 3.50% (S)% (S)%

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Milkey last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on July 9, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/milkey-surname-popularity/.

"Milkey last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/milkey-surname-popularity/. Accessed 9 July, 2025

Milkey last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/milkey-surname-popularity/.

Search for a name

Search for a first or last name to learn more about its origin, meaning, and more.

Simple as that.