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

Sears, 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 Sears surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sears in America

Sears is the 1085th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sears surname appeared 32,206 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 11 people would have the surname Sears.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sears 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 Sears

The surname Sears is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "sear," meaning dry or withered. It was originally an occupational name for someone who made or sold dry goods.

Sears is first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Saier" in the county of Oxfordshire. In the 13th century, the name appears as "le Sers" in the Hundred Rolls of Huntingdonshire.

The earliest known bearer of the name was John le Sers, who was recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Norfolk in 1230. Another early reference is William le Seer, mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327.

The name Sears is also found in various place names, such as Sears Green in Essex, which was originally recorded as "Seresgrene" in 1320. Another example is Sears Fold in Lancashire, which was known as "Seresfold" in 1322.

Notable individuals with the surname Sears include Richard Sears (1863-1914), the American businessman who founded the Sears, Roebuck and Company retail corporation. George Franklin Sears (1821-1890) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a U.S. Senator from Mississippi.

Other historical figures with the Sears name include Edmund Hamilton Sears (1810-1876), an American Unitarian minister and author who wrote the popular Christmas carol "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear." Isaac Sears (1730-1786) was an American merchant and political activist who played a prominent role in the American Revolution.

Thomas Sears (1805-1888) was an English astronomer and meteorologist who made significant contributions to the study of comets and meteors. He was a founding member of the Royal Astronomical Society in London.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sears

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

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

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

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