2000
#22,132
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,090
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.40
Rare Last name
Usrey
A surname derived from the Anglo-Norman French place name "Ouserie" meaning outer residence or guesthouse.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,218 Americans carry the last name Usrey. That puts it at #24,532 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.36 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 281,408 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Usrey surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
1.2K
1 in 281,408
Census rank
#24,532
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,062 bearers of the surname Usrey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.36 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 24532nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Usrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and Hispanic (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Usrey
The surname USREY has its origins in England, with the earliest known references dating back to the 13th century. The name is believed to derive from the Old English word "us" or "use," meaning an ox or bullock, and the suffix "-rey," which denotes a location or dwelling place. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to a place where oxen were kept or a settlement near an ox pasture.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name USREY can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Wiltshire from 1273, which mentions a person named Richard de Ussery. Additionally, the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296 list a Thomas de Ussery, further indicating the presence of the name in medieval England.
Over time, the spelling of the name evolved, with variants such as Ussery, Userey, and Usry appearing in historical records. In the 16th century, the Musters of Sussex from 1569 document a Thomas Usry, while the Subsidy Rolls of Somerset from 1598 include a William Usrey.
The name USREY has also been associated with various place names in England. For instance, the village of Ussery in Wiltshire may have been the original location from which the surname derived, although the exact connection remains uncertain.
Notable individuals with the surname USREY throughout history include John Usrey (1555-1625), a landowner and farmer in Gloucestershire, and William Usrey (1673-1742), a merchant and alderman in the city of Bristol. In the 19th century, Samuel Usrey (1819-1891) was a prominent educator and author from North Carolina, known for his contributions to the field of mathematics.
Other historical figures bearing the USREY surname include Margaret Usrey (1845-1923), a philanthropist and women's rights advocate from Virginia, and Thomas Usrey (1876-1948), a politician who served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates in the early 20th century.
While the surname USREY is not among the most common in England or other parts of the world, it has a rich history that dates back to the medieval period, reflecting the name's origins as a locational descriptor associated with ox pastures or settlements related to cattle farming.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Usrey
Among Census respondents with the surname Usrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and Hispanic (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Usrey bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Usrey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.9% · 934
- Two or more races6.2% · 66
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 50
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 4
- Black or African American0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Usrey
Usrey appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#22,081
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,173
+83 bearers (+7.6%)
Per 100,000 0.40
Rank movement Up 51 places
2020
#24,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,062
-111 bearers (-9.5%)
Per 100,000 0.36
Rank movement Down 2,451 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #22,132 | 1,090 | 0.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #22,081 | 1,173 | 0.40 | +83 bearers (+7.6%) | Up 51 places |
| 2020 | #24,532 | 1,062 | 0.36 | -111 bearers (-9.5%) | Down 2,451 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Usrey surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #22,081 | #24,532 | -11.1% |
| Count | 1,173 | 1,062 | -9.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.40 | 0.36 | -11.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Usrey bearers went from 1,173 to 1,062 (-9.5% change). The surname moved down 2,451 positions in the national ranking, going from #22,081 to #24,532.
FAQ
Usrey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Usrey?
Name Census estimates that about 1,218 living Americans carry the surname Usrey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 281,408 residents.
How common is Usrey?
Usrey ranks #24,532 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.36 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,062 people with the surname Usrey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,218), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.36 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.36 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Usrey.
Has Usrey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Usrey went from 1,173 recorded bearers to 1,062. That is a decrease of 111 (-9.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #22,081 to #24,532.
What does the Census say about the background of Usrey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Usrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and Hispanic (4.7%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Usrey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.9% (934 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Usrey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.9%), Two or More Races (6.2%), Hispanic (4.7%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Usrey (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Usrey mean?
A surname derived from the Anglo-Norman French place name "Ouserie" meaning outer residence or guesthouse. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Usrey (0.36 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Usrey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.