2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Sadleir
A variant of the English locational surname derived from places named with the Old English elements saedl 'saddle' and leah 'clearing'.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Sadleir. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sadleir 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Sadleir in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sadleir, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sadleir
The surname Sadleir is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "sadol," meaning "saddle," and "hyr," meaning "maker" or "worker." It was an occupational name for a saddler or someone who made and repaired saddles.
The earliest recorded instance of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Sadlere" in various counties across England, including Derbyshire, Gloucestershire, and Oxfordshire. This suggests that the name was already well-established by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066.
During the Middle Ages, the name was also found in various spellings, such as "Sadeler," "Sadlier," and "Sadlyer," reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions of the time.
One notable early bearer of the name was Sir Ralph Sadleir (c. 1507-1587), a prominent statesman and diplomat during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Elizabeth I. He served as a Secretary of State and played a crucial role in the ecclesiastical and political affairs of the Tudor period.
Another prominent figure was Michael Sadler (1780-1835), a social reformer and philanthropist who campaigned for the improvement of working conditions in factories and the education of children. He was instrumental in the passage of the Factory Act of 1833, which regulated the employment of children in textile mills.
In the literary world, Mary Sadleir (1872-1956) was a renowned biographer and novelist who wrote extensively about the Regency period in England. Her works, such as "The Life of Jane Austen" and "The Illustrated Jane Austen," were widely acclaimed for their scholarship and attention to detail.
The name Sadleir was also prominent in the military, with Sir Samuel Sadleir (1588-1663) serving as a Royalist commander during the English Civil War. He fought alongside King Charles I and was eventually captured by Parliamentary forces at the Battle of Worcester in 1651.
Another notable figure was Thomas Sadleir (1786-1835), an Irish politician and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament for Bandonbridge and was actively involved in the Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland during the early 19th century.
While the name Sadleir has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including North America, Australia, and New Zealand, carried by English settlers and immigrants over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sadleir
Among Census respondents with the surname Sadleir, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Sadleir 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 Sadleir surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.1% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 3
- Two or more races2.0% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sadleir
Sadleir 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
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-7 bearers (-6.4%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 17,676 places
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 3,677 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | -7 bearers (-6.4%) | Down 17,676 places |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 3,677 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 Sadleir 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 | #158,432 | #154,755 | 2.3% |
| Count | 102 | 102 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 13.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sadleir bearers went from 102 to 102 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 3,677 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #154,755.
FAQ
Sadleir surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sadleir?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Sadleir. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Sadleir?
Sadleir ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Sadleir. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Sadleir.
Has Sadleir become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sadleir went from 102 recorded bearers to 102. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Sadleir?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sadleir, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Sadleir in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.1% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sadleir appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.1%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Sadleir (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 Sadleir mean?
A variant of the English locational surname derived from places named with the Old English elements saedl 'saddle' and leah 'clearing'. 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 Sadleir (0.03 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 Sadleir?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.