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

Sawyers, 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 Sawyers surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sawyers in America

Sawyers is the 6718th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sawyers surname appeared 5,026 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Sawyers.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sawyers 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 Sawyers

The surname Sawyers is an occupational name derived from the Old English word "sawyer," which referred to a person who sawed wood for a living. The name originated in England and can be traced back to the 12th century.

The earliest recorded instance of the name Sawyers appears in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1194, where a certain William le Sauyer is mentioned. The Pipe Rolls were a record of financial transactions made by the English Exchequer during the Middle Ages.

In the 13th century, the name is found in various forms, such as Sauyer, Sawier, and Sauer, reflecting the regional variations in spelling and pronunciation. One notable example is John le Sauyer, who is recorded in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1292.

The Sawyers name is also present in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, a census-like survey conducted by King Edward I. These rolls provide valuable information about the distribution of the name across different counties in England during that period.

As the centuries passed, the Sawyers surname spread across various regions of England, and some individuals bearing the name achieved notable status. For instance, Robert Sawyer (1633-1692) was an English lawyer and politician who served as Attorney General during the reign of King James II.

Another prominent figure was Sir James Sawyer (1807-1882), a British civil engineer who played a significant role in the construction of railways in India during the 19th century.

In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the Sawyers surname is found in the Virginia colonial records from the 17th century. Thomas Sawyers, born around 1620, was among the early settlers in Virginia and is considered one of the progenitors of the Sawyers family in America.

Other notable individuals with the Sawyers surname include Amos Sawyer (1925-2022), a Liberian politician and scholar who served as the interim president of Liberia from 1990 to 1994, and Diane Sawyer (born 1945), a renowned American journalist and television personality.

Throughout its long history, the Sawyers surname has maintained its connection to the occupation of woodworking and sawing, although its bearers have pursued diverse professions and made significant contributions in various fields.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sawyers

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

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

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

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