Explore the Family Name Irey

The meaning of Irey

Possibly an altered form of German Eirer, an occupational name for an egg dealer, from Middle High German ei ‘egg’. This surname is common in PA and OH. The surname Eirer is not found in Germany.

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

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

According to the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Irey has seen a slight decrease in popularity over the course of a decade. In 2000, the surname was ranked 23,104th most popular in the U.S., but it fell to 25,518th by 2010, indicating a decline of approximately 10.45%. The count of individuals bearing the Irey surname also declined by 6.2%, from 1,032 in 2000 to 968 in 2010. Consequently, the proportion of people named Irey per 100,000 individuals decreased by 13.16% in the same period.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#23,104	#25,518	-10.45%
Count	1,032	968	-6.2%
Proportion per 100k	0.38	0.33	-13.16%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Irey

When it comes to the ethnic identity associated with the Irey surname, the Decennial U.S. Census shows that the vast majority identify as white, with small percentages identifying as being of two or more races or Hispanic. In 2000, 95.16% identified as white, a figure which slightly increased to 95.25% by 2010. Those identifying as Hispanic made up 1.45% in 2000 and saw an increase to 1.96% by 2010, marking a 35.17% change. Individuals of two or more races constituted 1.16% in 2000, increasing to 1.45% in 2010. There was no recorded data for Asian/Pacific Islander in either year, while Black representation decreased from 1.16% in 2000 to 0 in 2010. For the first time in 2010, 0.62% identified as American Indian and Alaskan Native.

	2000	2010	Change
White	95.16%	95.25%	0.09%
Hispanic	1.45%	1.96%	35.17%
Two or More Races	1.16%	1.45%	25%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0.62%	0%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
Black	1.16%	0%	0%