2000
#97,848
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 172
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Shays
A topographic surname derived from the French word "chaise", meaning an area of level land or meadow.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 197 Americans carry the last name Shays. That puts it at #109,465 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,739,870 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shays 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
197
1 in 1,739,870
Census rank
#109,465
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
172
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 172 bearers of the surname Shays in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 109465th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shays, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.5%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shays
The surname SHAYS originated in Ireland, with the earliest known records dating back to the 11th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old Irish Gaelic word "saidh," meaning "wise" or "learned." The name was initially found in counties such as Cork, Kerry, and Limerick.
One of the earliest documented references to the SHAYS surname is in the Annals of Inisfallen, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled by monks in the 12th century. The annals mention a "Muircheartach Ua Saidhi" (Muircheartach O'Shays) in an entry dated 1092.
The SHAYS name also appears in the Annals of the Four Masters, a celebrated collection of medieval Irish chronicles. An entry from the year 1170 records the death of "Donnsleibhe Ua Saidhe" (Donnsleibhe O'Shays), described as a distinguished poet and historian.
In the 16th century, the anglicized spelling "SHAYS" began to appear more frequently. One notable figure from this period was Hugh SHAYS (c. 1540 – 1600), an Irish-born soldier who served in the English army during the Nine Years' War in Ireland.
During the 17th century, the SHAYS surname spread beyond Ireland as many families emigrated to other parts of Europe and the Americas. One prominent individual was Daniel SHAYS (1747 – 1825), an American revolutionary war veteran and leader of the Shays' Rebellion, an armed uprising against the government of Massachusetts in 1786-1787.
In the 18th century, the SHAYS name was also found in Scotland, where the spelling variations "SHAW" and "SHAWES" were common. One notable figure was Sir James SHAW (1764 – 1843), a Scottish merchant and philanthropist who co-founded the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh.
As the SHAYS surname continued to disperse across the globe in the 19th century, it retained its strong association with Ireland. One notable bearer of the name was Patrick SHAYS (1803 – 1871), an Irish-born Catholic priest who served as the first Bishop of Hartford, Connecticut.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shays
Among Census respondents with the surname Shays, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.5%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Shays 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 Shays surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.1% · 143
- Hispanic or Latino10.5% · 18
- Two or more races5.2% · 9
- Black or African American0.6% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shays
Shays 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
#95,115
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 192
+20 bearers (+11.6%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 2,733 places
2020
#109,465
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 172
-20 bearers (-10.4%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 14,350 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #97,848 | 172 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #95,115 | 192 | 0.07 | +20 bearers (+11.6%) | Up 2,733 places |
| 2020 | #109,465 | 172 | 0.06 | -20 bearers (-10.4%) | Down 14,350 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 Shays 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 | #95,115 | #109,465 | -15.1% |
| Count | 192 | 172 | -10.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.06 | -17.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shays bearers went from 192 to 172 (-10.4% change). The surname moved down 14,350 positions in the national ranking, going from #95,115 to #109,465.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Shays
FAQ
Shays surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shays?
Name Census estimates that about 197 living Americans carry the surname Shays. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,739,870 residents.
How common is Shays?
Shays ranks #109,465 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 172 people with the surname Shays. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (197), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Shays.
Has Shays become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shays went from 192 recorded bearers to 172. That is a decrease of 20 (-10.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #95,115 to #109,465.
What does the Census say about the background of Shays?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shays, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.5%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Shays in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.1% (143 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shays appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.1%), Hispanic (10.5%), Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Shays (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 Shays mean?
A topographic surname derived from the French word "chaise", meaning an area of level land or meadow. 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 Shays (0.06 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 Americans have the surname Shays?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.