Explore the Family Name Charters

The meaning of Charters

1. Scottish (Kirkcudbrightshire) and northern English: habitational name of Norman origin from the French city of Chartres, named for a Gaulish tribe, recorded in Latin sources as the Carnutes, whose seat it was. 2. English: variant of Chatters.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Charters in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Charters has experienced a slight dip in popularity over the years. In the year 2000, its rank was 23,638 which dropped to 24,982 by 2010, equating to a 5.69% decrease. The count of individuals bearing this surname also saw a minor reduction from 1,000 in 2000 to 995 in 2010, resulting in a 0.5% decline. Consequently, the proportion of the name Charters per 100k people also fell by 8.11% during the same period.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#23,638	#24,982	-5.69%
Count	1,000	995	-0.5%
Proportion per 100k	0.37	0.34	-8.11%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Charters

The ethnic identity associated with the surname Charters shows some notable shifts as well, according to the Decennial U.S. Census data. While the majority identify as White, falling slightly from 96.2% in 2000 to 95.58% in 2010, there were changes among other ethnicities. The percentage of Asian/Pacific Islander dropped by 25%, going from 0.80% to 0.60%. On the other hand, those identifying as two or more races experienced an increase of just over 50%, rising from 1.20% to 1.81%. Additionally, the Hispanic representation inched upward from 1.30% to 1.41%, marking an 8.46% growth. The categories of Black and American Indian and Alaskan Native remained stagnant, both continuing to register no individuals with the Charters surname.

	2000	2010	Change
White	96.2%	95.58%	-0.64%
Two or More Races	1.2%	1.81%	50.83%
Hispanic	1.3%	1.41%	8.46%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0.8%	0.6%	-25%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%