Explore the Family Name Popejoy
The meaning of Popejoy
English (Somerset and Gloucestershire): nickname from Middle English papejai(e), papagei, pope(n)jai ‘parrot’ (via Old French papageai from Arabic bab(b)aghā). The ending of the English word was altered by folk etymological association with the bird name jay. The nickname was probably acquired by a talkative person or by someone who habitually dressed in bright colors, but occasionally it may have denoted someone who was connected with or who excelled at the medieval sport of tilting or shooting at a wooden parrot (popinjay) on a pole.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Popejoy in the United States?
Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname "Popejoy" appears to have slightly decreased between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked as the 18,461st most prevalent surname in the United States, with a count of 1,381 individuals bearing this name. By 2010, it had dropped slightly in rank to 20,037th, with a reduced count of 1,335. The proportion of people with the Popejoy surname per 100,000 also fell by 11.76% during this decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #18,461 | #20,037 | -8.54% |
| Count | 1,381 | 1,335 | -3.33% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.51 | 0.45 | -11.76% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Popejoy
In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that the majority of individuals with the surname Popejoy identified as White, accounting for 92.47% in 2000 and increasing slightly to 93.41% in 2010. The second most common ethnicity was those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native at 2.39% in 2000, decreasing to 1.80% in 2010. The Asian/Pacific Islander group saw an increase from 0.51% to 0.60% over the same period. Those identifying as two or more races slightly declined, while the percentage identifying as Hispanic also fell. The biggest change was seen among those identifying as Black, which dropped significantly by 36.21%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 92.47% | 93.41% | 1.02% |
| Two or More Races | 2.32% | 2.25% | -3.02% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 2.39% | 1.8% | -24.69% |
| Hispanic | 1.74% | 1.57% | -9.77% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.51% | 0.6% | 17.65% |
| Black | 0.58% | 0.37% | -36.21% |