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

Speight, 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 Speight surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Speight in America

Speight is the 6276th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Speight surname appeared 5,445 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Speight.

We can also compare 2010 data for Speight 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 Speight

The surname Speight has its origins in England, dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "speht," meaning "woodpecker." This name was likely given as a nickname to someone who resembled or shared characteristics with the woodpecker bird.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Speight can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, where it was spelled "Specht." This document was a record of financial transactions and accounts kept by the English Exchequer during the reign of King Henry II.

Over the centuries, the name Speight evolved to take on various spellings, such as Specht, Speght, and Spight, before settling into its modern form. Many of these variations can be found in historical records and documents from different regions of England.

In the 13th century, a notable bearer of the name was Sir John Speight, a knight who fought in the Battle of Evesham in 1265 during the Second Barons' War. He was recorded as "Johannes Specht" in contemporary chronicles.

Another prominent figure was Thomas Speight, born in 1545 in Yorkshire. He was a renowned scholar and author who published several works on the history and antiquities of his native county.

During the 17th century, the Speight surname was also found in the parish records of Ecclesfield, South Yorkshire, with entries for families using the spelling "Spight."

In the late 18th century, a place called Speight Town existed in the township of Wadsworth, West Yorkshire. This name was likely derived from the surname itself, indicating that the area was once associated with or inhabited by individuals bearing the Speight name.

Other notable individuals with the surname Speight include:

1. Richard Speight, an English clergyman and academic who lived in the late 16th century and served as the Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.
2. George Speight, a Fijian politician and businessman who led a civilian coup d'état in Fiji in 2000.
3. James Speight, a Scottish brewer and businessman born in 1825, who founded the Speight's Brewery in Dunedin, New Zealand.
4. Thomas Wilkinson Speight, a 19th-century English antiquarian and archaeologist known for his work on the history and archaeology of Yorkshire.
5. Richard Speight Jr., an American actor and director born in 1970, best known for his roles in various television series, including Supernatural and Lucifer.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Speight

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

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

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

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