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

Tribe, 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 Tribe surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tribe in America

Tribe is the 36379th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tribe surname appeared 615 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 Tribe.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tribe 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 Tribe

The surname Tribe has its origins in the Old English word "tríb" or "tríbu", which referred to a group of people who shared a common ancestry or lived in the same area. This name likely originated in England during the Anglo-Saxon period, around the 5th to 11th centuries.

The name Tribe may have been used as a descriptive surname, given to someone who was a member of a particular tribe or clan. It could also have been used as a locational surname, referring to someone who lived in a particular area known for its tribal communities.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tribe can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears in various spellings, such as "Tribbe" and "Trybbe".

In the 13th century, a man named Richard Tribe was recorded as a taxpayer in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275. This is one of the earliest known instances of the name in its modern spelling.

During the medieval period, the name Tribe was most prevalent in the counties of Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, and Herefordshire in the West Midlands region of England. Some notable examples of the name from this time include John Tribe, who was listed as a landowner in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1334, and Thomas Tribe, who was mentioned in the Patent Rolls of Worcestershire in 1381.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name Tribe was Sir Walter Tribe, a knight who lived in the 14th century. He was a prominent figure in the court of King Edward III and accompanied the king on several military campaigns, including the Battle of Crécy in 1346.

Another notable figure with the surname Tribe was John Tribe, a Church of England clergyman who lived in the 16th century. He was the rector of the parish of Staunton in Worcestershire and is mentioned in various ecclesiastical records from that time.

During the 17th century, the Tribe family had established themselves in the county of Gloucestershire, where they owned significant landholdings. One member of this family, Thomas Tribe, served as the High Sheriff of Gloucestershire in 1662.

In the 18th century, the name Tribe was also found in the county of Somerset, where a family of that name resided in the town of Glastonbury. One notable member of this family was William Tribe, a wealthy merchant and landowner who lived from 1726 to 1802.

As the surname Tribe spread throughout England, it also began to appear in other parts of the British Isles, including Scotland and Ireland, where it may have been adopted by families of different origins.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tribe

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

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

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

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