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

Woosley, 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 Woosley surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Woosley in America

Woosley is the 8198th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Woosley surname appeared 4,048 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Woosley.

We can also compare 2010 data for Woosley 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 Woosley

The surname Woosley is of English origin, derived from a place name in Derbyshire, England. The name is believed to have originated in the 12th or 13th century and is thought to be a combination of the Old English words "wudu," meaning wood, and "leah," meaning a clearing or meadow.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Wodesleia." This suggests that the name was already in use by the time of the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.

In the 13th century, there are records of a family named Wuddesleye residing in the village of Woosley, located in the parish of Hartington, Derbyshire. This village likely took its name from the same Old English roots as the surname.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals bearing the surname Woosley. One such person was Sir John Woosley (c. 1450-1512), who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1498-1499.

Another prominent figure was Sir Edward Woosley (1557-1630), an English politician and judge who served as Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas from 1625 until his death.

In the 17th century, William Woosley (1608-1676) was an English clergyman and academic who served as the Warden of New College, Oxford, from 1661 to 1676.

The 18th century saw the birth of Thomas Woosley (1738-1805), an English cleric and academic who became the President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, in 1790.

In more recent times, Robert Woosley (1921-2009) was a prominent American physicist and weapons designer who played a key role in the development of nuclear weapons during the Manhattan Project.

While the surname Woosley is not among the most common in English-speaking countries, it has a rich history that can be traced back to medieval England and the villages of Derbyshire.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Woosley

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

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

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

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