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

Payment, 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 Payment surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Payment in America

Payment is the 34314th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Payment surname appeared 661 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 Payment.

We can also compare 2010 data for Payment 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 Payment

The surname PAYMENT is an occupational name that originated in England in the late medieval period. It derives from the Old English word "paiement", which referred to the action of paying or making a payment. The name likely originated as a descriptor for someone whose occupation involved collecting payments or tolls.

In the 13th century, the name was recorded as "le Paiement" in Norfolk, indicating it was initially a descriptive nickname before becoming an inherited surname. Similar early spellings included Payement, Paymente, and Paiment. These variations reflect the diverse dialect influences on the development of English surnames.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Richard Payement, who was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275. Another early record is that of William le Paiement, mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1292.

The PAYMENT surname is also linked to place names in England, such as Paymentbury in Devonshire and Paymentcroft in Gloucestershire. These locations likely derived their names from individuals bearing the PAYMENT surname who resided or owned land there.

Notable individuals with the PAYMENT surname throughout history include:

1. John Payement (c. 1350-1420), an English cleric and theologian who served as the Chancellor of the University of Cambridge.
2. Thomas Paymente (1460-1518), an English merchant and member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers in London.
3. Elizabeth Payment (c. 1570-1635), a landowner in Dorset who was involved in a legal dispute over inheritance rights.
4. Sir Richard Payment (1625-1695), a British military officer who served in the English Civil War and later became the Governor of Jersey.
5. William Payement (1718-1802), a renowned clockmaker from Lincolnshire whose timepieces were highly prized in the 18th century.

While not a common surname today, the PAYMENT name has a rich history rooted in England's medieval occupational culture and reflects the diverse linguistic influences that shaped the development of English surnames.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Payment

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

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

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

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