2000
#44,027
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 461
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.17
Very Rare Last name
Raitt
A Scottish surname derived from a parish in Renfrewshire.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 576 Americans carry the last name Raitt. That puts it at #45,838 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 595,060 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Raitt 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 Raitt with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
576
1 in 595,060
Census rank
#45,838
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
502
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 502 bearers of the surname Raitt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 45838th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Raitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Raitt
The surname RAITT is of Scottish origin, deriving from the Gaelic word "rath" meaning a fort or earthen rampart. It is believed to have originated in the Scottish Highlands around the 13th or 14th century.
The earliest recorded use of the name RAITT can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the late 13th century, where it appears as "de Rath" or "de Rathe". This suggests that the name may have initially been a locational surname, referring to someone who lived near a fortified settlement or defensive earthwork.
In the 16th century, the name RAITT appears in various Scottish records and documents, often spelled as "Rait", "Raitt", or "Raith". One notable bearer of the name was John Raitt, a Scottish clergyman and writer who lived from 1572 to 1628.
The RAITT surname is also associated with several place names in Scotland, such as Raith in Fife and Raith in Aberdeenshire. These place names likely derived from the same Gaelic root word "rath", indicating the presence of ancient fortifications or earthworks in those areas.
Other notable individuals with the surname RAITT include:
1. Sir James Raitt (1622-1705), a Scottish landowner and politician who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh.
2. Robert Raitt (1715-1784), a Scottish poet and writer from Renfrewshire.
3. Martha Raitt (1813-1890), a Scottish-born Canadian pioneer and educator who founded several schools in Upper Canada.
4. John Raitt (1917-2005), an American actor and singer best known for his roles in Broadway musicals like "The Pajama Game" and "Carousel".
5. Bonnie Raitt (born 1949), an American singer-songwriter and multi-Grammy Award winner, daughter of the Broadway star John Raitt.
While the surname RAITT has Scottish origins, it has spread to various parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, due to migration and diaspora over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Raitt
Among Census respondents with the surname Raitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Raitt 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 Raitt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.4% · 444
- Hispanic or Latino5.4% · 27
- Two or more races4.0% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 7
- Black or African American0.4% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Raitt
Raitt 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
#42,163
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 515
+54 bearers (+11.7%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Up 1,864 places
2020
#45,838
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 502
-13 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Down 3,675 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #44,027 | 461 | 0.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #42,163 | 515 | 0.17 | +54 bearers (+11.7%) | Up 1,864 places |
| 2020 | #45,838 | 502 | 0.17 | -13 bearers (-2.5%) | Down 3,675 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 Raitt 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 | #42,163 | #45,838 | -8.7% |
| Count | 515 | 502 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.17 | 0.17 | -1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Raitt bearers went from 515 to 502 (-2.5% change). The surname moved down 3,675 positions in the national ranking, going from #42,163 to #45,838.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Raitt
FAQ
Raitt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Raitt?
Name Census estimates that about 576 living Americans carry the surname Raitt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 595,060 residents.
How common is Raitt?
Raitt ranks #45,838 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.17 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 502 people with the surname Raitt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (576), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.17 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 Raitt.
Has Raitt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Raitt went from 515 recorded bearers to 502. That is a decrease of 13 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #42,163 to #45,838.
What does the Census say about the background of Raitt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Raitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Raitt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.4% (444 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Raitt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.4%), Hispanic (5.4%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Raitt (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 Raitt mean?
A Scottish surname derived from a parish in Renfrewshire. 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 Raitt (0.17 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 Raitt?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.