Explore the Family Name Minister

The meaning of Minister

English (Norfolk and Suffolk): occupational name from Middle English menistre, ministre ‘minister, clergyman’. There has been some confusion with Minster.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname "Minister" has seen a slight rise between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked as the 115,489th most common surname in America, but by 2010, it had climbed to 109,258th place, marking a 5.4% increase. The number of people holding this surname also grew by 15.71%, from 140 individuals in 2000 to 162 in 2010. However, its proportion per 100,000 people remained the same at 0.05.

20002010Change
Rank#115,489#109,2585.4%
Count14016215.71%
Proportion per 100k0.050.050%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Minister

Looking at the ethnic identity associated with the surname "Minister", the data from the Decennial U.S. Census reveals a few changes between 2000 and 2010. Most notably, there was a decline in the percentage of those identifying as white, dropping from 92.14% to 85.80%. On the other hand, the percentage of holders of this surname identifying as black increased significantly from 5% to 8.64%, representing a 72.8% rise. Additionally, the census reported a new occurrence of Hispanic ethnicity, which was absent in the 2000 data but accounted for 4.94% in 2010. There were no recorded instances of Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian or Alaskan Native, or those identifying as two or more races.

20002010Change
White92.14%85.8%-6.88%
Black5%8.64%72.8%
Hispanic0%4.94%0%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
Two or More Races0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%