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

Shipe, 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 Shipe surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Shipe in America

Shipe is the 12115th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Shipe surname appeared 2,573 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Shipe.

We can also compare 2010 data for Shipe 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 Shipe

The surname SHIPE has its roots in Germany, where it originated as a variation of the German word "Schiffer," meaning "boatman" or "sailor." This occupational surname likely emerged in the late medieval period, when many surnames began to derive from professions or trades.

The earliest recorded instances of the SHIPE surname date back to the 14th century in various regions of Germany, such as Bavaria and Saxony. Historical records from this era often featured spellings like "Schipper" or "Schypper," which eventually evolved into the modern form of SHIPE.

One notable early bearer of the SHIPE name was Johannes Schipper, a merchant and ship owner from Lübeck, who lived in the late 15th century. His involvement in maritime trade likely contributed to the association of the name with seafaring occupations.

In the 16th century, the SHIPE surname spread beyond Germany as individuals emigrated to other parts of Europe and eventually to the Americas. Hans Shippe, born in 1534 in Cologne, was among the earliest recorded settlers with this surname in the New World, arriving in Pennsylvania in the late 1600s.

Another prominent figure with the SHIPE surname was Sir Edward Shipe, an English naval officer who lived from 1618 to 1687. He played a significant role in several naval battles during the Anglo-Dutch Wars and was knighted for his service to the Crown.

In the 18th century, John Shipe (1708-1778) was a notable American farmer and landowner in Virginia. His descendants went on to establish themselves in various parts of the United States, contributing to the spread of the SHIPE surname across the country.

The SHIPE name has also been associated with several places, particularly in Germany. For instance, Schippenstadt, a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, is believed to have derived its name from the German word "Schipper," further reinforcing the connection between the surname and maritime occupations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Shipe

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

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

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

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