2000
#133,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Shuyler
A name of Dutch origin meaning "scholar" or "clerk".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Shuyler. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shuyler 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Shuyler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shuyler, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shuyler
The surname Shuyler is believed to have originated in the Netherlands, likely in the 16th or 17th century. It is thought to be derived from the Dutch word "schuil," which means "shelter" or "hiding place." The name may have been given to someone who lived near a place of refuge or concealment.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Shuyler can be found in the Dutch province of Gelderland in the late 16th century. There, a family by the name of Schuyler is mentioned in local records, with the spelling varying slightly from the modern form.
As Dutch settlers began to emigrate to the New World in the 17th century, some members of the Schuyler family made their way to the Dutch colony of New Netherland, which later became part of the British colony of New York. One of the most notable figures from this family was Peter Schuyler (1657-1724), a prominent colonial military leader and politician who served as mayor of Albany and a member of the New York Provincial Assembly.
Another distinguished individual with the Schuyler name was Philip John Schuyler (1733-1804), a general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He played a crucial role in the Battles of Saratoga, considered a turning point in the war.
In the 19th century, a notable bearer of the Schuyler name was Montgomery Schuyler (1843-1914), an American writer and architectural critic who helped shape public opinion on urban planning and architecture in New York City.
Over time, the spelling of the name evolved, with some branches adopting the "Shuyler" variation. One prominent figure with this spelling was Eugene Shuyler (1840-1890), an American author, translator, and diplomat who served as the United States Consul General in Constantinople (present-day Istanbul) and Moscow.
Another individual of note was Walter Shuyler Landor (1883-1966), an American painter and illustrator known for his portraiture and landscape works, many of which depicted scenes from the American Southwest.
While the Shuyler surname has its roots in the Netherlands and is most prevalent in Dutch-American communities, it has since spread to various parts of the world, carried by descendants of the original Dutch settlers and immigrants.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shuyler
Among Census respondents with the surname Shuyler, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Shuyler 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 Shuyler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.2% · 111
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shuyler
Shuyler 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
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
+10 bearers (+8.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 66 places
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-14 bearers (-11.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 14,173 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #133,114 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | +10 bearers (+8.5%) | Up 66 places |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -14 bearers (-11.0%) | Down 14,173 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 Shuyler 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 | #133,048 | #147,221 | -10.7% |
| Count | 127 | 113 | -11.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shuyler bearers went from 127 to 113 (-11.0% change). The surname moved down 14,173 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #147,221.
FAQ
Shuyler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shuyler?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Shuyler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Shuyler?
Shuyler ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Shuyler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Shuyler.
Has Shuyler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shuyler went from 127 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 14 (-11.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Shuyler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shuyler, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Shuyler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.2% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shuyler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (98.2%), Hispanic (0.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Shuyler (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 Shuyler mean?
A name of Dutch origin meaning "scholar" or "clerk". 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 Shuyler (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 surname Shuyler?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.