Explore the Family Name Railey
The meaning of Railey
1. Probably an Americanized form of Swiss German Rölli (see Roelle). 2. Americanized form of German Raile or Reile. 3. English: variant of Raleigh. 4. English: perhaps occasionally a habitational name from Rayleigh (Essex), recorded as Reilee in 1181 and Rayley in 1337. The placename derives from Old English rǣge ‘female roe-deer; wild she-goat’ + lēah ‘open woodland’.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Railey in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Railey has seen a surge in popularity in the United States. From 2000 to 2010, the count of people with this last name increased by approximately 31%, going from 2,481 individuals in 2000 to 3,246 in 2010. This increase moved the surname's rank up the list of most common surnames, from 11,605th place in 2000 to 9,940th place in 2010. The proportion of individuals with this surname per 100,000 people also grew by nearly 20% over the decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #11,605 | #9,940 | 14.35% |
| Count | 2,481 | 3,246 | 30.83% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.92 | 1.1 | 19.57% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Railey
The Decennial U.S. Census data also provides information about the ethnic identity associated with the surname Railey. In 2000, the majority of individuals identified as white (75.53%), followed by Black (20.19%), and those identifying with two or more races (1.69%). By 2010, while the percentage of individuals identifying as white had decreased slightly to 71.60%, there was an increase in all other ethnicity categories, notably Hispanic, which saw an almost 47% increase. There was, however, a significant decrease in the number of individuals identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native, dropping by more than 62%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 75.53% | 71.6% | -5.2% |
| Black | 20.19% | 23.14% | 14.61% |
| Hispanic | 1.49% | 2.19% | 46.98% |
| Two or More Races | 1.69% | 2.13% | 26.04% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.6% | 0.77% | 28.33% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.48% | 0.18% | -62.5% |