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

Pete, 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 Pete surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pete in America

Pete is the 7228th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pete surname appeared 4,619 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Pete.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pete 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 Pete

The surname Pete is believed to have originated in England during the Middle Ages. It is thought to be a shortened form of the name Peter, which is derived from the Greek word "petros" meaning "rock" or "stone." The earliest known record of the name Pete is found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Pede."

In the 13th century, the name Pete was also used as a nickname for those with the surname Pether or Pether. This surname is derived from the Old English word "paedre," meaning "path" or "track." It is possible that some families with the surname Pete may have originally been from places named after paths or tracks.

One notable individual with the surname Pete was Sir John Pete, who lived in the 14th century and served as a member of the English Parliament. He was born in the village of Peteworth, which may have been named after an early bearer of the Pete surname.

In the 16th century, the name Pete appeared in various spellings, such as Peet, Peete, and Peit. During this time, the surname was also associated with the place name Peterborough, which was sometimes spelled as "Peteburgh" or "Petebrugh."

Another individual of note was William Pete, born in 1589, who was a renowned scholar and author of several works on philosophy and theology. He was a member of the University of Cambridge and is believed to have hailed from the county of Lincolnshire.

In the 17th century, the surname Pete was found in various parts of England, including the counties of Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, and Derbyshire. One notable bearer of the name was Thomas Pete, born in 1623, who was a prominent merchant in the city of London.

Edward Pete, born in 1701, was a renowned architect and was responsible for the design of several churches and public buildings in the city of Bath. He is considered one of the most important figures in the Georgian architectural movement.

John Pete, born in 1789, was a renowned explorer and naturalist. He is known for his expeditions to the Arctic regions and his contributions to the study of flora and fauna in these areas.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pete

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

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

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

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