Explore the Family Name Rafter
The meaning of Rafter
Irish: from Ó Reachtabhair ‘descendant of Reachtabhar’, a personal name based on reacht ‘decree’. Compare Raftery. Some characteristic forenames: Irish Brendan, Malachy.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Rafter in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname "Rafter" has seen some fluctuations between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, Rafter was ranked as the 16,238th most popular surname in the U.S., but by 2010, it had slipped to the 16,984th spot, marking a drop of 4.59%. Despite this fall in ranking, the actual number of people with the surname Rafter increased from 1,635 in 2000 to 1,673 in 2010, a rise of 2.32%. However, the proportion of individuals with the Rafter surname per 100,000 people decreased by 6.56% during the same timeframe.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #16,238 | #16,984 | -4.59% |
| Count | 1,635 | 1,673 | 2.32% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.61 | 0.57 | -6.56% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Rafter
When examining the ethnic identity of those bearing the Rafter surname, data from the Decennial U.S. Census reveals shifts across several categories between 2000 and 2010. Individuals identifying as White made up the vast majority of Rafters at 94.01% in 2000, decreasing slightly to 91.75% by 2010. Those identifying as Black saw a slight increase from 3.67% to 3.83%, while those identifying as Hispanic also rose from 1.35% to 1.91%. Interestingly, individuals identifying with two or more races showed significant growth, jumping from 0.67% to 1.37%, an increase of over 100%. The data for Asian/Pacific Islander and American Indian and Alaskan Native ethnicity was suppressed for privacy reasons.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 94.01% | 91.75% | -2.4% |
| Black | 3.67% | 3.83% | 4.36% |
| Hispanic | 1.35% | 1.91% | 41.48% |
| Two or More Races | 0.67% | 1.37% | 104.48% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |