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

Snodgrass, 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 Snodgrass surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Snodgrass in America

Snodgrass is the 2818th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Snodgrass surname appeared 12,806 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname Snodgrass.

We can also compare 2010 data for Snodgrass 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 Snodgrass

The surname Snodgrass has its origins in England and Scotland, dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "snod," meaning smooth or sleek, and "græs," meaning grass. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a person who lived near an area of well-kept or manicured grass.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Cumberland from 1332, which mentions a John de Snodgras. The name also appears in various forms, such as Snodgrasse and Snodgresse, in records from the 14th and 15th centuries in counties like Yorkshire, Northumberland, and Cumbria.

The Snodgrass surname is associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was William Snodgrass, born around 1440, who was a Scottish clergyman and the first Protestant minister of Ayr after the Reformation. Another prominent figure was Sir John Snodgrass, born in 1620, who was a Scottish soldier and served as the Governor of Blackness Castle.

In the 18th century, James Snodgrass, born in 1763, was a renowned Scottish physician and writer who published works on the theory and practice of medicine. William D. Snodgrass, born in 1926, was an American poet and academic who won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1960 for his collection "Heart's Needle."

Additionally, the name Snodgrass has been linked to several place names in England and Scotland, such as Snodgrass Hill in Northumberland and Snodgrass Farm in Cumbria, further reinforcing its historical ties to these regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Snodgrass

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

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

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

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