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

Starnes, 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 Starnes surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Starnes in America

Starnes is the 2507th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Starnes surname appeared 14,442 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Starnes.

We can also compare 2010 data for Starnes 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 Starnes

The surname Starnes is of English origin and is derived from the Old English word "stær," meaning a starling or small bird. It is believed to have originated as a nickname for someone who had a resemblance to or an affinity with starlings.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Starnling" in Berkshire. This suggests that the name was already in use during the 11th century.

In the 13th century, the name was recorded as "Starne" in the Assize Court Rolls of Yorkshire. Other early spellings include "Sterne" and "Sterneling," which are found in various medieval records from different parts of England.

One notable bearer of the surname was Sir William Starnes (c. 1450-1521), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Derbyshire during the reigns of Henry VII and Henry VIII.

Another historical figure with the name was John Starnes (1565-1626), a clergyman who served as the Bishop of Carlisle from 1617 until his death.

In the 17th century, the name appeared as "Starns" in the parish records of St. Giles, Cripplegate, London, where Robert Starns and his wife Elizabeth were listed as having a son named John in 1653.

During the 18th century, the spelling "Starnes" became more prevalent, as evidenced by the birth of Thomas Starnes in 1712 in Gloucestershire.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Starnes surname in America can be found in the Virginia colonial records, where a John Starnes is mentioned as a landowner in Henrico County in 1679.

In the 19th century, notable bearers of the surname included William Starnes (1810-1876), an American politician and lawyer who served as a U.S. Representative from Ohio, and James Starnes (1845-1911), a Confederate soldier during the American Civil War who later became a farmer and state legislator in North Carolina.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Starnes

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

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

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

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