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

Speights, 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 Speights surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Speights in America

Speights is the 10159th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Speights surname appeared 3,176 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 Speights.

We can also compare 2010 data for Speights 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 Speights

The surname Speights originates from England and dates back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "speght" or "specht," which referred to a type of woodpecker bird. This suggests that the name may have initially been a nickname for someone with a resemblance to the bird or perhaps worked with wood.

The earliest known recorded use of the name Speights can be traced back to the Pipe Rolls of Staffordshire in 1199, where a person named Richard Speght was mentioned. Another early reference is found in the Hundred Rolls of Buckinghamshire in 1273, which lists a William Speght.

In the 14th century, the name appeared in various forms such as Specht, Speght, and Spight in various records and manuscripts across England. One notable example is John Speght, a 16th-century English writer and editor born around 1555, who published works on English history and literature.

The name Speights has also been associated with certain place names in England, such as Speightstown in Barbados, which was named after Sir William Speight, a landowner and member of the British Parliament in the 17th century.

Other notable individuals with the surname Speights include:

1. William Speight (1615-1668), an English clergyman and author known for his work on church history.
2. Thomas Wilkinson Speight (1836-1914), a British architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings in Yorkshire.
3. Harry Speight (1876-1951), an English cricketer who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
4. Joseph Speight (1883-1957), a British trade unionist and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Batley and Morley.
5. Richard Speight Jr. (born 1970), an American actor known for his roles in television shows like Supernatural and Jericho.

Throughout history, the surname Speights has undergone various spelling variations, including Speight, Spight, Specht, and Speght, reflecting the regional dialects and transcription practices of different areas in England.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Speights

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

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

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

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