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

Rancher, 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 Rancher surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rancher in America

Rancher is the 77012th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rancher surname appeared 249 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 Rancher.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rancher 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 Rancher

The surname Rancher is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. The name is derived from the Old English word "ranc," which means "tall" or "slender." It may have been an occupational surname given to someone who was particularly tall or slender. Alternatively, it could have been a descriptive name referring to someone who lived near a steep slope or hillside.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England after the Norman Conquest, there are several entries for individuals with the surname Rancher or variations like Rauncher or Rauncer. These early spellings suggest the name was well-established by the 11th century.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rancher can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1199, which mention a William Rauncher. In the 13th century, the name appears in several records from the county of Oxfordshire, including a Ralph Rauncher mentioned in the Assize Rolls of 1279.

During the Middle Ages, the Rancher family was associated with the village of Rauncher, located in the county of Wiltshire. This place name likely derived from the same Old English root as the surname, suggesting a connection between the family and this particular location.

Notable individuals with the surname Rancher throughout history include:

1. Sir John Rancher (c. 1360 - 1420), a member of the English gentry and landowner in Gloucestershire.
2. Henry Rancher (1485 - 1556), a wealthy merchant and alderman in the city of London.
3. Elizabeth Rancher (1555 - 1622), an English writer and poet known for her religious works.
4. Thomas Rancher (1621 - 1684), a prominent Puritan minister and author in New England, born in Lincolnshire, England.
5. William Rancher (1738 - 1810), a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War.

The Rancher surname has undergone various spelling variations over the centuries, including Rauncher, Rauncer, Rauncer, and Rancer, reflecting the evolution of language and regional dialects. However, the name's origins can be traced back to the Old English word "ranc" and its association with physical attributes or geographical features in medieval England.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rancher

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!