Swaby last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Swaby

A locational surname derived from a place called Swaby in Yorkshire, England.

Swaby, 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 Swaby surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Swaby in America

Swaby is the 18354th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Swaby surname appeared 1,509 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 Swaby.

We can also compare 2010 data for Swaby 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 18354 21479 -15.69%
Count 1,509 1,134 28.38%
Proportion per 100k 0.51 0.42 19.35%

The history of the last name Swaby

The surname SWABY is of English origin, originating from the village of Swaby in Lincolnshire, England. The name is derived from the Old Norse words "sveinr" meaning "young man" and "byr" meaning "village" or "settlement". It is believed that the surname was first used to refer to someone who hailed from the village of Swaby.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname SWABY can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Suavebi". This record suggests that the name was already in use by the late 11th century.

In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various forms such as "de Swavebi" and "de Swayby". These variations likely stemmed from the different ways the name was pronounced and spelled in different regions of England.

One notable figure bearing the surname SWABY was John Swaby, a 16th-century English merchant who was born in 1525 and died in 1598. He was a member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers and played a significant role in the trade between England and the Netherlands.

Another person of historical significance was William Swaby, born in 1690 and died in 1765. He was an English architect and surveyor who worked on several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. George the Martyr in Southwark.

In the 18th century, the SWABY surname was also found in the records of the East India Company. Thomas Swaby, born in 1745 and died in 1812, was a captain in the company's maritime service and was involved in trade voyages to India and China.

The 19th century saw the rise of several notable individuals with the SWABY surname. One such figure was Henry Swaby, born in 1820 and died in 1898, who was a renowned English artist and painter known for his landscape and genre paintings.

Another prominent figure was Elizabeth Swaby, born in 1835 and died in 1912. She was a pioneering educator and author who wrote several books on teaching methods and education reform. Her work had a significant impact on the education system in England during the late 19th century.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Swaby

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

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 Swaby was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 15.04% 227
Non-Hispanic Black Only 76.61% 1,156
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 2.98% 45
Hispanic Origin 4.90% 74

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 Swaby has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 15.04% 19.40% -25.32%
Black 76.61% 69.66% 9.50%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 2.98% 5.47% -58.93%
Hispanic 4.90% 5.03% -2.62%

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

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Swaby last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/swaby-surname-popularity/.

"Swaby last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/swaby-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Swaby last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/swaby-surname-popularity/.

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