Explore the Family Name Grain
The meaning of Grain
1. English: topographic name from Old Norse grein ‘inlet; fork in a river’, or a habitational name from some place with that or a similar name, such as Grain (Kent). 2. English: from the Old Norse personal name Grein, literally ‘branch’, but also ‘discord’ or ‘discernment’. 3. English: from Middle English grain ‘bud, pimple, pustule’ (Old French grain), possibly a nickname for a person with facial marks. From the late 16th century the name was augmented, or possibly superseded, by the name of the Protestant refugees from France and the Low Countries (see 4 below). 4. French: nickname from Old French grain (from Frankish gram) ‘sad’ or from Old French grain ‘bud, pimple, pustule’ (compare 3 above).
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Grain in the United States?
According to the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Grain has seen a slight decrease in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked 97,848th, but by 2010, it had slipped to 106,570th, a decline of nearly 9%. Similarly, the count of people with the Grain surname dropped from 172 to 167 during this period, marking a decrease of almost 3%. Despite these changes, the proportion per 100,000 individuals bearing the Grain surname remained steady at 0.06.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #97,848 | #106,570 | -8.91% |
| Count | 172 | 167 | -2.91% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.06 | 0.06 | 0% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Grain
In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that the majority of individuals with the surname Grain identified as White, with a slight increase from 62.79% in 2000 to 63.47% in 2010. The second largest group identified as Black, although their proportion decreased from 33.14% to 29.94% over the same timeframe. Interestingly, there was an emergence of Hispanic identification within the Grain surname holders, increasing to 4.19% in 2010, while previously in 2000 there were no reported Hispanic connections. There were also a small percentage of individuals who identified as belonging to two or more races in 2000, however, this data was suppressed in the 2010 Census. No individuals with the Grain surname identified as Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either census year.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 62.79% | 63.47% | 1.08% |
| Black | 33.14% | 29.94% | -9.66% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 4.19% | 0% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Two or More Races | 2.91% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |