Explore the Family Name Sholes

The meaning of Sholes

1. Probably an altered form of English Scholes. 2. Perhaps also an Americanized form of German Scholz. History: The first documented bearer of this surname in North America was John Sholes, who died in 1752 in New London County, CT (or, according to some sources, his father of the same name, who lived a few decades earlier).

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

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

Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Sholes saw a shift in its popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it ranked 20,152 but by 2010, it had dropped slightly to a rank of 20,394. This represents a mild decrease of 1.2%. However, the total count of people with the surname Sholes increased by 5.93% during this period, growing from 1,230 to 1,303 individuals. The proportion per 100k also experienced a small decline of 4.35%, shifting from 0.46 to 0.44.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#20,152	#20,394	-1.2%
Count	1,230	1,303	5.93%
Proportion per 100k	0.46	0.44	-4.35%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Sholes

The ethnic identity associated with the surname Sholes also experienced some changes between 2000 and 2010, based on the Decennial U.S. Census data. The percentage of individuals identifying as white remained relatively steady, increasing slightly from 83.41% to 83.58%. Those identifying as Black decreased by 9.18%, from 12.85% to 11.67%. The most significant change was seen in those claiming two or more races, which nearly doubled from 0.89% to 1.77%. A modest increase was also observed in those identifying as Hispanic, moving from 1.87% to 2.23%. No individuals identified as Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either year.

	2000	2010	Change
White	83.41%	83.58%	0.2%
Black	12.85%	11.67%	-9.18%
Hispanic	1.87%	2.23%	19.25%
Two or More Races	0.89%	1.77%	98.88%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%