2000
#11,770
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,437
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.90
Rare Last name
Schley
A German occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of sleighs or sledges.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,589 Americans carry the last name Schley. That puts it at #13,005 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 132,389 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schley 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
2.6K
1 in 132,389
Census rank
#13,005
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,258 bearers of the surname Schley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13005th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schley, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.3%. The next largest groups are Black (15.1%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schley
The surname SCHLEY originates from Germany and is believed to have derived from the Middle High German word "slēhe," which means "sloe" or "blackthorn bush." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near a blackthorn bush or worked with these plants.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 14th century in various regions of Germany, such as Bavaria and Saxony. During this time, the name appeared in different spellings, including Schleye, Schleher, and Schleier.
One of the earliest known references to the name SCHLEY can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, dated around the mid-14th century. This record mentions a person named "Conradus Schleye," indicating the presence of the name in that region.
In the 16th century, the name SCHLEY gained prominence through the work of Johann Schley, a German cartographer and mathematician born in 1515 in Königsberg, Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia). He produced several maps and charts, contributing significantly to the advancement of cartography during the Renaissance period.
Another notable figure with the surname SCHLEY was the American naval officer Winfield Scott Schley (1839-1911). He played a crucial role in the Spanish-American War, commanding the Flying Squadron during the Battle of Santiago de Cuba in 1898.
Other historical figures bearing the name SCHLEY include Johann Schley (1619-1667), a German composer and organist known for his sacred music compositions, and Johann Friedrich Schley (1765-1841), a German writer and educator who authored several educational works.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name SCHLEY appeared in various regions of Germany, including Saxony, Bavaria, and Württemberg, as well as in other parts of Europe, such as the Netherlands and Switzerland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schley
Among Census respondents with the surname Schley, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.3%. The next largest groups are Black (15.1%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Schley 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 Schley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.3% · 1,746
- Black or African American15.1% · 342
- Two or more races3.8% · 85
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 54
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schley
Schley 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
#12,782
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,414
-23 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 1,012 places
2020
#13,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,258
-156 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Down 223 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,770 | 2,437 | 0.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,782 | 2,414 | 0.82 | -23 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 1,012 places |
| 2020 | #13,005 | 2,258 | 0.76 | -156 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 223 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 Schley 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 | #12,782 | #13,005 | -1.7% |
| Count | 2,414 | 2,258 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.82 | 0.76 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schley bearers went from 2,414 to 2,258 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 223 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,782 to #13,005.
FAQ
Schley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schley?
Name Census estimates that about 2,589 living Americans carry the surname Schley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 132,389 residents.
How common is Schley?
Schley ranks #13,005 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,258 people with the surname Schley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,589), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Schley.
Has Schley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schley went from 2,414 recorded bearers to 2,258. That is a decrease of 156 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,782 to #13,005.
What does the Census say about the background of Schley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schley, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.3%. The next largest groups are Black (15.1%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Schley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.3% (1,746 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.3%), Black (15.1%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Schley (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 Schley mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of sleighs or sledges. 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 Schley (0.76 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 Schley?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.