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

Silliman, 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 Silliman surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Silliman in America

Silliman is the 17392nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Silliman surname appeared 1,623 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 Silliman.

We can also compare 2010 data for Silliman 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 Silliman

The surname SILLIMAN is of English origin, emerging in the late 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "sylle," meaning "base" or "foundation," which later evolved into the word "sill" referring to the base or threshold of a door or window. The name may have originally been an occupational surname for a builder or carpenter responsible for laying foundations or sills.

Early records of the name can be found in various parish registers and census records across England, particularly in the counties of Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Somerset. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was William Silliman, recorded in the Wiltshire parish registers in 1585.

The SILLIMAN surname was also found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive record of landowners and property holdings in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. However, the spelling at that time was slightly different, appearing as "Sillimann" or "Sillemann."

In the 17th century, the surname gained prominence with the birth of Benjamin Silliman (1616-1684), a prominent English colonist who emigrated to New England and settled in Connecticut. He became a respected figure in the Connecticut Colony and served as a magistrate and deputy governor.

Another notable bearer of the name was Benjamin Silliman Sr. (1779-1864), an American chemist and mineralogist who was a professor at Yale College (now Yale University). He is credited with introducing the concept of modern chemistry to the United States and played a significant role in the development of scientific education in the country.

Other notable individuals with the SILLIMAN surname include Benjamin Silliman Jr. (1816-1885), a chemist and geologist who followed in his father's footsteps as a professor at Yale; Augustus Ely Silliman (1805-1889), a lawyer and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives; and Benjamin Douglas Silliman (1805-1901), a chemist and professor at Yale who made significant contributions to the study of mineralogy and geology.

The SILLIMAN name has also been associated with various place names, such as Silliman College, one of the residential colleges at Yale University, and Silliman University, a prestigious private university located in Dumaguete City, Philippines, which was named after the Silliman family's contributions to education and philanthropy.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Silliman

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

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

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

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