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

Tait, 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 Tait surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tait in America

Tait is the 5540th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tait surname appeared 6,271 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Tait.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tait 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 Tait

The surname Tait has its origins in Scotland, dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English word "tate," which means "cheerful" or "high-spirited." The name was likely given as a nickname to someone with a particularly cheerful demeanor.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were scrolls containing the names of Scottish nobles who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. The name "Willelmus Tayt" is listed among the names of those from Berwickshire.

The Tait surname is also found in various medieval Scottish records, such as the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the 14th century and the Register of the Great Seal of Scotland from the 15th century. These records show variations in the spelling of the name, including Tayt, Tate, and Tait.

In the 16th century, the name appears in the Rental Book of the Cistercian Abbey of Cupar in Fife, Scotland, where a "Thomas Tait" is listed as a tenant. This suggests that the Tait family had established themselves in the county of Fife by that time.

One notable historical figure with the surname Tait was Archibald Campbell Tait (1811-1882), an influential Scottish-born Anglican bishop who served as the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1868 until his death. He was a prominent figure in the Church of England and played a significant role in the development of the Anglican Communion.

Another well-known Tait was John Tait (1589-1644), a Scottish mathematician and educator who served as the first professor of mathematics at the University of Edinburgh. He made significant contributions to the development of mathematics education in Scotland.

In the literary world, Samuel Tait (1819-1900) was a Scottish journalist and publisher who founded the publishing firm Tait & Sons. He also established and edited the influential literary magazine Tait's Edinburgh Magazine.

James Tait (1763-1817) was a Scottish bookseller and publisher who founded the prestigious Tait's Black Horse Inn in Edinburgh, which became a popular gathering place for literary figures and intellectuals in the 19th century.

Thomas Tait (1808-1886) was a Scottish philanthropist and businessman who founded the Tait Trust, a charitable organization that provided educational opportunities for underprivileged children in Scotland.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tait

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

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

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

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