Thresher last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Thresher

An occupational surname for one who operated a threshing machine to separate grain from husks.

Thresher, 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 Thresher surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Thresher in America

Thresher is the 26772nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Thresher surname appeared 909 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 Thresher.

We can also compare 2010 data for Thresher 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 26772 23617 12.52%
Count 909 1,001 -9.63%
Proportion per 100k 0.31 0.37 -17.65%

The history of the last name Thresher

The surname Thresher is an occupational name that originated in England during the medieval period. It derives from the Old English word 'thresscere', which means 'one who threshes grain'. The name was given to individuals who worked as threshers, responsible for separating the grain from the husks and stalks of cereal crops.

The earliest recorded instance of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Trescher'. This historical document, commissioned by William the Conqueror, served as a survey of land ownership and taxation across much of England and parts of Wales.

Throughout the Middle Ages, the Thresher surname was particularly prevalent in rural areas and farming communities, reflecting the agricultural nature of the occupation. The name was also found in various spellings, such as 'Thressher', 'Threscher', and 'Thrusher', reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions.

One notable individual bearing the Thresher surname was John Thresher (c. 1489-1546), an English clergyman and chaplain to King Henry VIII. He was a prominent figure during the Reformation and played a role in the dissolution of monasteries in England.

Another significant figure was William Thresher (1610-1668), an English merchant and colonist who settled in Virginia in the mid-17th century. He was involved in the tobacco trade and played a role in the early development of the colony.

In the 18th century, Benjamin Thresher (1725-1801) was a notable figure in the American Revolutionary War. He served as a captain in the Continental Army and participated in several battles, including the Battle of Monmouth.

During the 19th century, the Thresher surname was also associated with the development of agricultural machinery. Hiram Thresher (1812-1891) was an American inventor and manufacturer who patented several improvements to threshing machines, revolutionizing the process of grain separation.

Another prominent individual was James Thresher (1859-1934), a British engineer and inventor who made significant contributions to the development of agricultural machinery, particularly in the design of threshing machines and combine harvesters.

Throughout its history, the Thresher surname has maintained a strong connection to agriculture and rural life, reflecting the occupational origins of the name. Despite its widespread adoption across different regions, the name has retained its distinctive character and continues to be a recognizable surname in many parts of the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Thresher

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

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 Thresher was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 90.76% 825
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.88% 8
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.66% 6
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 1.43% 13
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.31% 21
Hispanic Origin 3.96% 36

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 90.76% 92.61% -2.02%
Black 0.88% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.66% 0.80% -19.18%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 1.43% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 2.31% 3.00% -25.99%
Hispanic 3.96% 2.50% 45.20%

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

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

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

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

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

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