2000
#11,903
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,408
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.89
Rare Last name
Shew
An occupational surname referring to someone who sewed clothing or shoes, or a variant of the surname Shaw.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,624 Americans carry the last name Shew. That puts it at #12,854 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 130,623 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shew 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Shew with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 130,623
Census rank
#12,854
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,288 bearers of the surname Shew in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12854th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shew, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shew
The surname SHEW is believed to have originated in England, with its earliest known roots dating back to the 16th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "sciowe," which meant a bush or a thicket. This name was likely adopted as a descriptive surname, referring to someone who lived near or worked in a bushy or wooded area.
Records from the 16th century show the name spelled in various ways, including Shew, Shewe, Shue, and Shoo. One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the parish records of Wiltshire, England, where a John Shew was mentioned in 1567.
In the 17th century, the SHEW surname appeared in several historical documents, such as the Hearth Tax Rolls of 1662 and the Protestation Returns of 1641-1642. These records provide valuable insights into the geographical distribution of the name during that period, with SHEW families recorded in counties like Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Dorset.
One notable individual with the surname SHEW was William Shew, born in 1639 in Somerset, England. He was a prominent Quaker minister and author, known for his religious writings and his advocacy for religious tolerance.
Another significant figure was Sarah Shew, born in 1788 in Gloucestershire, England. She was a pioneer in the field of education and founded one of the earliest schools for girls in the United States, the Shew Seminary in Shelbyville, Tennessee, in 1818.
In the 19th century, the SHEW surname continued to spread across different regions of England. One example is John Shew, born in 1825 in Wiltshire, who served as a member of parliament for Gloucestershire from 1868 to 1880.
Moving into the 20th century, one notable bearer of the SHEW surname was Sir Walter Shew, born in 1892 in Somerset. He was a prominent British diplomat and served as the Ambassador to the Netherlands from 1945 to 1950.
Another noteworthy individual was Elizabeth Shew, born in 1920 in Dorset, England. She was a renowned artist and sculptor, known for her abstract works and her contributions to the British art scene in the latter half of the 20th century.
While the SHEW surname remains relatively uncommon, it has a rich history that can be traced back to its English origins and the various individuals who have carried this name throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shew
Among Census respondents with the surname Shew, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Shew 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 Shew surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.5% · 1,933
- Asian and Pacific Islander7.5% · 172
- Two or more races3.6% · 82
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 71
- Black or African American0.9% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shew
Shew 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
#12,485
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,485
+77 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 582 places
2020
#12,854
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,288
-197 bearers (-7.9%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 369 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,903 | 2,408 | 0.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,485 | 2,485 | 0.84 | +77 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 582 places |
| 2020 | #12,854 | 2,288 | 0.77 | -197 bearers (-7.9%) | Down 369 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 Shew 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 | #12,485 | #12,854 | -3.0% |
| Count | 2,485 | 2,288 | -7.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.84 | 0.77 | -8.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shew bearers went from 2,485 to 2,288 (-7.9% change). The surname moved down 369 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,485 to #12,854.
FAQ
Shew surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shew?
Name Census estimates that about 2,624 living Americans carry the surname Shew. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 130,623 residents.
How common is Shew?
Shew ranks #12,854 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.77 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 2,288 people with the surname Shew. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,624), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.77 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 Shew.
Has Shew become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shew went from 2,485 recorded bearers to 2,288. That is a decrease of 197 (-7.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,485 to #12,854.
What does the Census say about the background of Shew?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shew, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Shew in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.5% (1,933 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shew appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (7.5%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Shew (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 Shew mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who sewed clothing or shoes, or a variant of the surname Shaw. 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 Shew (0.77 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 Shew?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Shew on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.