2000
#147,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Segear
A surname originating in England, possibly related to the old English word "seegar" meaning conqueror or victor.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Segear. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Segear 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Segear in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Segear, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Segear
The surname SEGEAR is believed to have originated in the late 13th century in the area of Somerset, England. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "secg" meaning man and "gar" meaning spear, potentially referring to a skilled spearman or soldier. One of the earliest records of this name appears in the Somerset Quarter Sessions Rolls of 1327, which mentions a John Segear from the village of Chedzoy.
In the 15th century, the name appears to have spread to neighboring counties like Dorset and Devon, with variations in spelling such as Seggeare and Seggere appearing in local parish records. The Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1524 for Dorset list a Thomas Seggeare as a landowner in the village of Melbury Osmond.
The Segear surname is also found in some early colonial records from the 17th century, suggesting that bearers of this name were among the early English settlers in the Americas. The Passenger and Immigration Lists Index records a William Segear arriving in Virginia in 1635.
Notable individuals with the surname Segear include:
1. Robert Segear (1570-1642), an English merchant and member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers in London.
2. Alice Segear (c. 1590-1662), one of the first English women to settle in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, arriving in 1630.
3. John Segear (1625-1688), a farmer and landowner in the parish of Stoke St. Gregory, Somerset.
4. Elizabeth Segear (1670-1745), a Quaker preacher and diarist from Wiltshire, known for her detailed accounts of religious life in the early 18th century.
5. William Segear (1795-1872), a prominent banker and philanthropist in Bath, Somerset, who founded the Segear Almshouses for the poor.
While the Segear surname is relatively uncommon today, it has a rich history dating back to medieval England, with bearers of this name leaving their mark across various professions and regions over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Segear
Among Census respondents with the surname Segear, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Segear 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 Segear surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.6% · 106
- Two or more races9.1% · 11
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Segear
Segear 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
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
+5 bearers (+4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,437 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+13 bearers (+12.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,223 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #147,095 | 103 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.9%) | Down 4,437 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | +13 bearers (+12.0%) | Up 10,223 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 Segear 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 | #151,532 | #141,309 | 6.7% |
| Count | 108 | 121 | 12.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Segear bearers went from 108 to 121 (+12.0% change). The surname moved up 10,223 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #141,309.
FAQ
Segear surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Segear?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Segear. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Segear?
Segear ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Segear. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Segear.
Has Segear become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Segear went from 108 recorded bearers to 121. That is an increase of 13 (+12.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Segear?
Among Census respondents with the surname Segear, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Segear in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.6% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Segear appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.6%), Two or More Races (9.1%), Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Segear (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 Segear mean?
A surname originating in England, possibly related to the old English word "seegar" meaning conqueror or victor. 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 Segear (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 many people have the last name Segear?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Segear at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.