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

Paylor, 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 Paylor surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Paylor in America

Paylor is the 18411th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Paylor surname appeared 1,504 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Paylor.

We can also compare 2010 data for Paylor 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 Paylor

The surname Paylor originated in England during the late medieval period, specifically in the counties of Warwickshire and Gloucestershire. It is derived from the Old English words 'payl' meaning 'a person who works with spades or shovels' and 'or' meaning 'a maker or worker'. Thus, the surname Paylor likely referred to an occupation involving digging or excavation work.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Paylor can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Warwickshire from 1332, which mentions a Thomas le Paylour. The suffix 'our' was later dropped, leading to the modern spelling of Paylor. Another early reference is in the Court Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1384, which mentions a John Paylour.

The Paylor surname is also linked to the village of Pailton in Warwickshire. The name Pailton is derived from the Old English words 'payl' and 'tun', meaning 'the settlement of the diggers or excavators'. It's likely that some Paylor families originated from this village or took their name from it.

In the 16th century, the Paylor surname appears in various records, including the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Warwickshire from 1524, which mentions a Thomas Paylor. Another notable mention is in the Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1572, where a John Paylor is recorded.

Some notable individuals with the surname Paylor throughout history include:

1. William Paylor (c. 1550-1620), an English clergyman and author who served as the Rector of Houghton Conquest in Bedfordshire.

2. Richard Paylor (1604-1677), an English politician who served as the Member of Parliament for Southwark from 1654 to 1659.

3. Elizabeth Paylor (1670-1738), an English landowner and philanthropist from Warwickshire who donated funds for the construction of a school and almshouses in the village of Pailton.

4. John Paylor (1715-1795), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the latter part of the 18th century and participated in several battles during the American Revolutionary War.

5. Thomas Paylor (1789-1861), an English entrepreneur and industrialist from Gloucestershire who founded a successful textile manufacturing business in the early 19th century.

The Paylor surname has a rich history rooted in the occupational and geographical origins of medieval England, and its bearers have contributed to various fields throughout the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Paylor

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

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

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

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