2000
#3,878
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,415
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.12
Rare Last name
Raney
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "ravens' island" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,436 Americans carry the last name Raney. That puts it at #4,167 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 36,324 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Raney 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 Raney with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.4K
1 in 36,324
Census rank
#4,167
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,229 bearers of the surname Raney in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4167th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Raney, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Black (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Raney
The surname Raney is of English origin, derived from a Middle English locational name from a place called Raven or Reigny in Lancashire. This name is believed to come from the Old English words "hræfn" meaning raven and "eg" meaning island or dry ground in a marsh.
Records show the earliest known bearer of the name was Alan de Rauenegh, who was listed in the Pipe Rolls of Sussex in 1195. The name was also found in various forms in other medieval records, such as Raueneye in the Hundred Rolls of Norfolk in 1275 and Rauenay in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327.
One of the earliest known people with the surname Raney was John Raneye, who was mentioned in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in Yorkshire in 1317. Another early bearer was William Raveneye, listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1334.
In the 16th century, the name appeared in various spellings, including Raneye, Raney, and Rayney. One notable person from this period was Richard Raney, a merchant from Bristol, who was born around 1540 and died in 1605.
During the 17th century, the surname Raney became more prevalent, particularly in the northern counties of England. One notable bearer was Thomas Raney, a landowner from Yorkshire who was born in 1637 and died in 1712.
In the 18th century, the name spread to other parts of England and began to appear in records in Scotland and Ireland. One notable person was William Raney, a Scottish merchant who lived in Glasgow and was born in 1725 and died in 1798.
As the name became more widespread, it began to be associated with various place names, such as Rainey in Essex, Rainey in Lancashire, and Raney in Shropshire. The name has also been linked to the village of Rainey in County Antrim, Northern Ireland.
Some other notable people with the surname Raney throughout history include John Raney (1766-1849), an English poet and writer, and William Raney (1770-1842), a British naval officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Raney
Among Census respondents with the surname Raney, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Black (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Raney 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 Raney surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.0% · 7,075
- Two or more races4.4% · 363
- Black or African American4.2% · 346
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 281
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 94
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 70
Timeline
Historical Census data for Raney
Raney 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
#4,038
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,801
+386 bearers (+4.6%)
Per 100,000 2.98
Rank movement Down 160 places
2020
#4,167
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,229
-572 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 2.75
Rank movement Down 129 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,878 | 8,415 | 3.12 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,038 | 8,801 | 2.98 | +386 bearers (+4.6%) | Down 160 places |
| 2020 | #4,167 | 8,229 | 2.75 | -572 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 129 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 Raney 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 | #4,038 | #4,167 | -3.2% |
| Count | 8,801 | 8,229 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.98 | 2.75 | -7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Raney bearers went from 8,801 to 8,229 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 129 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,038 to #4,167.
FAQ
Raney surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Raney?
Name Census estimates that about 9,436 living Americans carry the surname Raney. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 36,324 residents.
How common is Raney?
Raney ranks #4,167 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.75 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,229 people with the surname Raney. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,436), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.75 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Raney.
Has Raney become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Raney went from 8,801 recorded bearers to 8,229. That is a decrease of 572 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,038 to #4,167.
What does the Census say about the background of Raney?
Among Census respondents with the surname Raney, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Black (4.2%). 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 Raney in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.0% (7,075 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Raney appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.0%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Black (4.2%). 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 Raney (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 Raney mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "ravens' island" in Old English. 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 Raney (2.75 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 last name Raney?
Find out how many people have the last name Raney on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.