2000
#1,462
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 22,397
First available Census row
Per 100,000 8.30
Uncommon Last name
Rainey
Derived from a place name or from an Old French word referring to someone who lived near a boundary.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 25,753 Americans carry the last name Rainey. That puts it at #1,561 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.51 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 13,309 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rainey 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Rainey with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
26K
1 in 13,309
Census rank
#1,561
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
22K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 22,458 bearers of the surname Rainey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.51 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1561st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rainey, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.5%. The next largest groups are Black (30.8%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rainey
The surname Rainey is of Anglo-Saxon origin, derived from the Old English word "regn" meaning rain. It was originally a descriptive name given to someone who lived near a rainy area or whose land was prone to heavy rainfall.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rainey can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Reigni" and "Reigney". This suggests that the name was well-established in parts of England by the 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, the name was commonly spelled as "Rayne", "Raynee", and "Rayney". It was particularly prevalent in the counties of Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Staffordshire, where many places bore names derived from the Old English word "regn", such as Rainhill, Rainford, and Rainow.
Noteworthy historical figures with the surname Rainey include Sir Thomas Rainey (c. 1510-1582), an English politician who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1573. Another prominent bearer of the name was Sir William Rainey (1587-1655), an English landowner and Member of Parliament for Aldborough.
In Scotland, the Rainey family can trace their roots to the 16th century, with records indicating that a John Rainey was a burgess of Aberdeen in 1568. The name was also present in Ireland, where it is believed to have been introduced by English settlers during the Plantation of Ulster in the 17th century.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Rainey was Sir William Rainey Harper (1856-1906), an American academic and the first president of the University of Chicago. Other notable Raineys include Thomas Rainey (1843-1876), an American soldier and recipient of the Medal of Honor during the American Civil War, and Freda Rainey (1887-1963), an American archaeologist and anthropologist who conducted extensive research in Alaska.
Throughout history, the surname Rainey has been associated with various industries, professions, and walks of life, reflecting the diverse backgrounds of those who bore this name. From politicians and landowners to academics and soldiers, the Rainey family has left an indelible mark on the annals of history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rainey
Among Census respondents with the surname Rainey, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.5%. The next largest groups are Black (30.8%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Rainey 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 Rainey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White60.5% · 13,596
- Black or African American30.8% · 6,923
- Two or more races4.3% · 969
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 727
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 131
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 112
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rainey
Rainey 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
#1,545
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,291
+894 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 7.90
Rank movement Down 83 places
2020
#1,561
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 22,458
-833 bearers (-3.6%)
Per 100,000 7.51
Rank movement Down 16 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,462 | 22,397 | 8.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,545 | 23,291 | 7.90 | +894 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 83 places |
| 2020 | #1,561 | 22,458 | 7.51 | -833 bearers (-3.6%) | Down 16 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 Rainey 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 | #1,545 | #1,561 | -1.0% |
| Count | 23,291 | 22,458 | -3.6% |
| Per 100K | 7.90 | 7.51 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rainey bearers went from 23,291 to 22,458 (-3.6% change). The surname moved down 16 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,545 to #1,561.
FAQ
Rainey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rainey?
Name Census estimates that about 25,753 living Americans carry the surname Rainey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 13,309 residents.
How common is Rainey?
Rainey ranks #1,561 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.51 per 100,000 residents, which is about 8 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 22,458 people with the surname Rainey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (25,753), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.51 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.51 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 8 of them to have the surname Rainey.
Has Rainey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rainey went from 23,291 recorded bearers to 22,458. That is a decrease of 833 (-3.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,545 to #1,561.
What does the Census say about the background of Rainey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rainey, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.5%. The next largest groups are Black (30.8%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Rainey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.5% (13,596 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rainey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (60.5%), Black (30.8%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Rainey (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 Rainey mean?
Derived from a place name or from an Old French word referring to someone who lived near a boundary. 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 Rainey (7.51 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 people have the surname Rainey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.