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

Venables, 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 Venables surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Venables in America

Venables is the 38801st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Venables surname appeared 569 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 Venables.

We can also compare 2010 data for Venables 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 Venables

The surname Venables originates from England, first appearing in the mid 11th century shortly after the Norman Conquest of 1066. It derives from the Old French "veneur" meaning "huntsman" or "gamekeeper", reflecting an occupation or status.

Records show early spellings such as Venator and Venour, similar to the modern French "veneur". The name is thought to have emerged in the northern counties of England, particularly Cheshire and Lancashire, where hunting and gamekeeping were prevalent vocations.

One of the earliest known references is in the Domesday Book of 1086, which lists a landowner named Richard Venator in Cheshire. This suggests the name was established among the Norman aristocracy who settled in northwest England after the conquest.

In the 13th century, the form Venables started appearing more frequently in official records and charters across the region. This included Gilbert de Venables, born around 1200, who served as Baron of Kinderton in Cheshire.

Sir Hugh Venables, born in 1280, was among the knights who fought alongside Edward I in the Welsh wars. He later held the manors of Agden and Golborne in Lancashire.

During the Wars of the Roses in the 15th century, prominent members of the Venables family allied with the House of Lancaster. This included Sir Thomas Venables, born in 1415, who served as Baron of Kinderton and fought at the Battle of Towton in 1461.

By the 16th century, the Venables had established themselves as a major gentry family in Cheshire. Robert Venables, born in 1550, served as Sheriff of Cheshire. His great-nephew Thomas, born in 1595, became Governor of Windsor Castle under Charles I.

Other noteworthy individuals over the centuries included Robert Venables (1608-1687), a Puritan minister in colonial New England, and George Venables-Vernon (1710-1780), a member of Parliament and Lord of the Admiralty.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Venables

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

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

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

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