2000
#132,259
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Quary
A surname derived from "quarry," suggesting an association with quarrying or mining.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Quary. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Quary 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Quary in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Quary, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.5%. The next largest groups are Black (29.8%) and Two or More Races (7.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Quary
The surname Quary has its origins in the French region of Normandy, where it emerged in the medieval period. The name is derived from the Old French word "quarrier," which referred to a worker in a quarry or someone who extracted stone from quarries. This occupational surname likely originated in the 11th or 12th century when such trades were becoming more specialized.
The earliest recorded instance of the Quary surname can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears in various spellings, such as "Quarrier" and "Quarriere," indicating the presence of Normans with this occupational surname in England shortly after the Norman Conquest.
One notable figure bearing this surname was Richard Quary, a British architect born in 1661. He was responsible for designing several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. Anne and St. Agnes in Gresham Street and the Foundling Hospital, which was a pioneering institution for abandoned children.
Another individual of historical significance was John Quary, born in 1565 in Somerset, England. He was a prominent lawyer and Member of Parliament who served as Recorder of London from 1610 to 1623. His legal expertise and influential role in the city's governance made him a respected figure during the Jacobean era.
In the 18th century, Samuel Quary (1720-1789) was a successful merchant and landowner from Worcestershire, England. He amassed a considerable fortune through his business ventures and acquired substantial landholdings, reflecting the social mobility that some families with the Quary surname achieved during this period.
Moving across the Atlantic, one notable bearer of the Quary surname was William Quary, born in 1745 in Virginia. He fought as a patriot during the American Revolutionary War and later served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, representing Loudoun County in the late 18th century.
Finally, in the 19th century, James Quary (1818-1891) was a respected educator and headmaster in England. He spent most of his career leading prestigious schools, including Cheltenham College and Repton School, where he played a significant role in shaping the education of generations of students.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Quary
Among Census respondents with the surname Quary, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.5%. The next largest groups are Black (29.8%) and Two or More Races (7.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Quary 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 Quary surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White53.5% · 61
- Black or African American29.8% · 34
- Two or more races7.9% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino5.3% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Quary
Quary 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
#137,327
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
+4 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,068 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-8 bearers (-6.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,168 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #132,259 | 118 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #137,327 | 122 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 5,068 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.6%) | Down 9,168 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 Quary 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 | #137,327 | #146,495 | -6.7% |
| Count | 122 | 114 | -6.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Quary bearers went from 122 to 114 (-6.6% change). The surname moved down 9,168 positions in the national ranking, going from #137,327 to #146,495.
FAQ
Quary surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Quary?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Quary. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Quary?
Quary ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 114 people with the surname Quary. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Quary.
Has Quary become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Quary went from 122 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 8 (-6.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #137,327 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Quary?
Among Census respondents with the surname Quary, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.5%. The next largest groups are Black (29.8%) and Two or More Races (7.9%). 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 Quary in the 2020 Census, accounting for 53.5% (61 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Quary appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (53.5%), Black (29.8%), Two or More Races (7.9%). 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 Quary (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 Quary mean?
A surname derived from "quarry," suggesting an association with quarrying or mining. 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 Quary (0.04 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 many Americans have the surname Quary?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.