2000
#8,707
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,474
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.29
Rare Last name
Stamey
Derived from a place name meaning "stony island" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,665 Americans carry the last name Stamey. That puts it at #9,696 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 93,521 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stamey surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
3.7K
1 in 93,521
Census rank
#9,696
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,196 bearers of the surname Stamey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9696th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stamey, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stamey
The surname STAMEY originated in England, with roots dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "stæm," meaning a post or stump, and may have been used as a descriptive name for someone living near a prominent tree stump or boundary marker.
One of the earliest records of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1195, where it appears as "Robert de Stame." Over time, the name evolved into various spellings, including Stame, Stamma, and Stammey, before settling on the modern form of STAMEY.
In the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, a certain Roger de Stamme is mentioned as a landowner in Oxfordshire, indicating the name's presence in different regions of England during the Middle Ages.
The STAMEY surname has been connected to several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded bearers was John Stamey, born in 1568 in Gloucestershire, who was a renowned wool merchant and philanthropist in his time.
Another prominent figure was William STAMEY (1620-1693), a Puritan minister who emigrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1638 and served as the pastor of the First Church of Roxbury for over five decades.
In the 18th century, James STAMEY (1734-1815) was a British soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Virginia, where his descendants became prominent landowners and community leaders.
During the Victorian era, Elizabeth STAMEY (1818-1892) was a well-known author and advocate for women's rights, publishing several novels and essays on gender equality and social reform.
More recently, Robert STAMEY (1908-1989) was a renowned architect who designed several iconic buildings in New York City, including the United Nations Headquarters and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
While the STAMEY surname may have originated in England, it has since spread across the globe, with bearers in various countries and cultures contributing to its rich tapestry of history and achievement.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stamey
Among Census respondents with the surname Stamey, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Stamey bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Stamey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.0% · 3,003
- Two or more races2.8% · 89
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 60
- Black or African American0.8% · 27
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stamey
Stamey appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#9,171
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,560
+86 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 1.21
Rank movement Down 464 places
2020
#9,696
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,196
-364 bearers (-10.2%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 525 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,707 | 3,474 | 1.29 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,171 | 3,560 | 1.21 | +86 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 464 places |
| 2020 | #9,696 | 3,196 | 1.07 | -364 bearers (-10.2%) | Down 525 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Stamey surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #9,171 | #9,696 | -5.7% |
| Count | 3,560 | 3,196 | -10.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.21 | 1.07 | -11.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stamey bearers went from 3,560 to 3,196 (-10.2% change). The surname moved down 525 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,171 to #9,696.
FAQ
Stamey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stamey?
Name Census estimates that about 3,665 living Americans carry the surname Stamey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 93,521 residents.
How common is Stamey?
Stamey ranks #9,696 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.07 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,196 people with the surname Stamey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,665), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.07 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Stamey.
Has Stamey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stamey went from 3,560 recorded bearers to 3,196. That is a decrease of 364 (-10.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,171 to #9,696.
What does the Census say about the background of Stamey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stamey, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.9%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Stamey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.0% (3,003 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stamey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.0%), Two or More Races (2.8%), Hispanic (1.9%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Stamey (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Stamey mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "stony island" in Old English. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Stamey (1.07 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Stamey?
You can see how many Americans have the surname Stamey on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.