2000
#137,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Raskey
A Russified form of the Polish and Ukrainian surname Raszka, meaning "person from Raszka" (a place name).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Raskey. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Raskey 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Raskey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Raskey, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Raskey
The surname Raskey is of English origin, tracing its roots back to the 14th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "raesc" meaning "rush" and "eg" meaning "island" or "land covered with rushes." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a marshy area or a rush-covered piece of land.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379, which mentions a John Raskye. This suggests that the name was already established in Northern England by the late 14th century.
In the 16th century, the Raskey surname appeared in various documents, such as parish records and manorial rolls. For instance, a Thomas Raskey was listed in the Leicestershire Musters of 1587. This spelling variation highlights the fluidity of surnames during that era.
The name Raskey has also been linked to several place names in England, such as Raskelfe in North Yorkshire and Raskelf in Nottinghamshire. These locations may have influenced the surname's development or provided a geographical association for early bearers of the name.
Notable individuals with the Raskey surname throughout history include:
1. William Raskey (c. 1620 - 1698), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Maldon in Essex during the late 17th century.
2. Elizabeth Raskey (1754 - 1832), a British author and poet known for her work "Poems on Various Subjects," published in 1790.
3. Richard Raskey (1789 - 1861), an English cartographer and surveyor who contributed to the mapping of various counties in the early 19th century.
4. James Raskey (1812 - 1887), a British architect and civil engineer who designed several notable bridges and public buildings in London and the surrounding areas.
5. Mary Raskey (1875 - 1958), an American educator and women's rights activist who campaigned for educational reforms and equal opportunities for women in the early 20th century.
While the Raskey surname may not have been as prominent as some other English surnames, it has left its mark on history through individuals from various walks of life, from politics and literature to engineering and social activism.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Raskey
Among Census respondents with the surname Raskey, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Raskey 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 Raskey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.7% · 102
- Hispanic or Latino6.4% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Raskey
Raskey 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
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+5 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,292 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-7 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,338 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #137,816 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.5%) | Down 4,292 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 7,338 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 Raskey 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 | #142,108 | #149,446 | -5.2% |
| Count | 117 | 110 | -6.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Raskey bearers went from 117 to 110 (-6.0% change). The surname moved down 7,338 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #149,446.
FAQ
Raskey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Raskey?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Raskey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Raskey?
Raskey ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Raskey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Raskey.
Has Raskey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Raskey went from 117 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 7 (-6.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Raskey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Raskey, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%). 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 Raskey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.7% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Raskey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.7%), Hispanic (6.4%), American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%). 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 Raskey (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 Raskey mean?
A Russified form of the Polish and Ukrainian surname Raszka, meaning "person from Raszka" (a place name). 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 Raskey (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 common is the surname Raskey?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Raskey at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.