2000
#19,071
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,320
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.49
Rare Last name
Palmateer
An occupational surname derived from the Middle English word "palmatour" meaning someone who made palmers' staves or pilgrims' staffs.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,440 Americans carry the last name Palmateer. That puts it at #21,249 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.42 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 238,024 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Palmateer 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
1.4K
1 in 238,024
Census rank
#21,249
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,256 bearers of the surname Palmateer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.42 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 21249th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmateer, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Palmateer
The surname Palmateer is of English origin, derived from the old French word "palmetier," meaning a maker or seller of pilgrims' staves or palmers' staves. These were walking sticks carried by pilgrims on their journeys, often adorned with a palm leaf or cross at the top. The name is believed to have originated in the 14th or 15th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Essex Subsidy Rolls of 1524, where a William Palmeter is listed. The name was also found in various church records in the 16th and 17th centuries, with spellings such as Palmiter, Palmeter, and Palmetor.
In the late 16th century, the name Palmateer appears in the records of the parish of St. Mary Woolnoth in London, where a Thomas Palmateer was born in 1592. Another early record is that of John Palmateer, who was baptized in the parish of St. Olave, Hart Street, London, in 1603.
One notable bearer of the name was Sir William Palmateer (1640-1712), a wealthy merchant and landowner in Devon, England. He served as a member of parliament for Plympton Erle from 1689 to 1712.
Another significant figure was James Palmateer (1780-1859), a Scottish-born farmer and politician in Upper Canada (now Ontario, Canada). He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada from 1836 to 1840.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the name is that of John Palmateer, who was born in New York in 1755 and served as a private in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.
Other notable individuals with the surname Palmateer include:
1. Robert Palmateer (1821-1892), an American politician who served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.
2. George Palmateer (1843-1917), a Canadian businessman and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
3. William Palmateer (1856-1939), an American architect and engineer known for his work on several notable buildings in New York City.
4. Harriet Palmateer (1878-1958), an American artist and illustrator, best known for her work in children's literature.
5. John Palmateer (1916-2002), a Canadian ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League for the Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Palmateer
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmateer, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Palmateer 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 Palmateer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.1% · 1,169
- Two or more races2.9% · 37
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 7
- Black or African American0.2% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Palmateer
Palmateer 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
#19,992
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,340
+20 bearers (+1.5%)
Per 100,000 0.45
Rank movement Down 921 places
2020
#21,249
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,256
-84 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.42
Rank movement Down 1,257 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #19,071 | 1,320 | 0.49 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,992 | 1,340 | 0.45 | +20 bearers (+1.5%) | Down 921 places |
| 2020 | #21,249 | 1,256 | 0.42 | -84 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 1,257 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 Palmateer 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 | #19,992 | #21,249 | -6.3% |
| Count | 1,340 | 1,256 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.45 | 0.42 | -6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Palmateer bearers went from 1,340 to 1,256 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 1,257 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,992 to #21,249.
FAQ
Palmateer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Palmateer?
Name Census estimates that about 1,440 living Americans carry the surname Palmateer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 238,024 residents.
How common is Palmateer?
Palmateer ranks #21,249 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.42 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 1,256 people with the surname Palmateer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,440), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.42 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.42 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 Palmateer.
Has Palmateer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Palmateer went from 1,340 recorded bearers to 1,256. That is a decrease of 84 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #19,992 to #21,249.
What does the Census say about the background of Palmateer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmateer, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Palmateer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.1% (1,169 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Palmateer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.1%), Two or More Races (2.9%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Palmateer (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 Palmateer mean?
An occupational surname derived from the Middle English word "palmatour" meaning someone who made palmers' staves or pilgrims' staffs. 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 Palmateer (0.42 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 Palmateer?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Palmateer on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.