Explore the Family Name Matei

The meaning of Matei

1. Romanian: from the personal name Matei, an equivalent of Greek Matthaios (see Matthew). 2. German: variant of Mathei (pronounced as three syllables), a variant of the personal name Mathäus (see Matthew).

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Matei has seen a surge in popularity over the past decade. In 2000, Matei was ranked as the 90,652nd most popular surname in the United States; however, by 2010, it had made a significant leap to the 57,372nd position, marking a 36.71% increase. The count of individuals with the Matei surname also witnessed an impressive growth from 189 persons in 2000 to 355 by 2010, an increase of 87.83%. Consequently, the proportion of people with the surname Matei per 100,000 residents increased by 71.43% during this period.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#90,652	#57,372	36.71%
Count	189	355	87.83%
Proportion per 100k	0.07	0.12	71.43%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Matei

Turning to the ethnicity associated with the surname Matei, the Decennial U.S. Census data indicates that the majority identify as White. In 2000, 92.06% of individuals with the surname Matei identified as White, and this figure rose slightly to 94.37% by 2010. The percentage identifying as Hispanic also saw a small increase from 3.17% in 2000 to 3.66% in 2010. The data reveals that there were no individuals with the Matei surname who identified as Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either census year. Notably, the proportion identifying as two or more races dropped from 4.23% in 2000 to zero in 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
White	92.06%	94.37%	2.51%
Hispanic	3.17%	3.66%	15.46%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
Two or More Races	4.23%	0%	0%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%