Find out how popular the last name Sooy is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Sooy.
A surname derived from the Dutch surname "Sooi", likely referring to a dairy farm or pasture.
Sooy, 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 Sooy surname is from the 2010 census data.
Sooy is the 34495th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Sooy surname appeared 656 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Sooy.
We can also compare 2010 data for Sooy 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.
| 2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 34495 | 33993 | 1.47% |
| Count | 656 | 632 | 3.73% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.22 | 0.23 | -4.44% |
The surname Sooy originated in the Netherlands during the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Dutch word "sooi," which means "a little pool or puddle." The name may have referred to someone who lived near a small body of water or a low-lying area prone to flooding.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Sooy surname can be found in the Dutch province of Friesland, where the name was spelled "Sooije" or "Sooyen." Historical records indicate that a family bearing this name resided in the village of Wolvega as early as the late 1500s.
As Dutch settlers migrated to the American colonies in the 17th and 18th centuries, some individuals with the surname Sooy made their way to the New World. One notable figure was Hendrick Sooy, who was born in the Netherlands around 1650 and later settled in New Amsterdam (present-day New York City).
In the early 1700s, a branch of the Sooy family established itself in the area of Monmouth County, New Jersey. Jacobus Sooy, born in 1695, is recorded as one of the earliest bearers of the name in the region. His descendants went on to become prominent landowners and farmers in the area.
Another individual of historical significance was Cornelius Sooy, born in 1776 in Monmouth County. He served as a soldier in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and later became a respected member of the local community.
Other notable individuals with the Sooy surname include John Sooy (1824-1892), a successful businessman and politician from New Jersey who served as a member of the state legislature, and William Sooy Smith (1830-1903), a Union Army officer during the American Civil War who achieved the rank of Brevet Major General.
While the surname Sooy is relatively uncommon today, it remains a reminder of the Dutch heritage and early settlement patterns that shaped the cultural landscape of regions like New Jersey and New York.
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Sooy.
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:
For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Sooy was:
| Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
|---|---|---|
| Non-Hispanic White Only | 95.12% | 624 |
| Non-Hispanic Black Only | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | (S)% | (S) |
| Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | 1.83% | 12 |
| Hispanic Origin | 2.13% | 14 |
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 Sooy has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
| 2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 95.12% | 95.73% | -0.64% |
| Black | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | (S)% | 1.11% | (S)% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
| Two or More Races | 1.83% | 0.95% | 63.31% |
| Hispanic | 2.13% | 2.06% | 3.34% |
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 Sooy was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
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