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

Tailor, 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 Tailor surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tailor in America

Tailor is the 28131st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tailor surname appeared 851 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Tailor.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tailor 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 Tailor

The surname Tailor is an occupational name that originated in England during the medieval period. It derives from the Old English word "tayliour" or the Anglo-Norman French word "taillour," both of which refer to a person who cuts and sews cloth to make garments. The name is believed to have first emerged in the 12th or 13th century, when the practice of adopting hereditary surnames became more common among the English population.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Tailor can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which listed a person named William le Taillour in Oxfordshire. Another early reference is in the Subsidy Rolls of 1327, which mentioned a John le Taillour in Cambridgeshire. These records suggest that the name was already in use and established by the late 13th and early 14th centuries.

Several notable individuals have borne the surname Tailor throughout history. One of the earliest was John Tailor (c. 1425-1485), an English priest and theologian who served as the Chancellor of the University of Cambridge from 1465 to 1485. Another prominent figure was Robert Tailor (c. 1490-1558), an English Protestant reformer and martyr who was burned at the stake during the Marian Persecutions under Queen Mary I.

In the 17th century, a family of Taylors played a significant role in the English Civil War. John Tailor (1594-1653) was a prominent Puritan minister and member of the Westminster Assembly, while his brother Silius Tailor (1619-1675) was a colonel in the Parliamentarian army and fought alongside Oliver Cromwell.

The surname Tailor has also been associated with several notable literary figures, such as the 18th-century English playwright and poet Thomas Tailor (1715-1766), and the 19th-century American novelist and short story writer John Tailor (1819-1892), best known for his works "The Sketch Book" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow."

In some cases, the surname Tailor has evolved into alternative spellings or variations, such as Taylor, Taylour, and Tailour. These variations can often be traced back to specific regions or local dialects within England, where the name may have been pronounced or recorded differently over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tailor

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

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

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

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