Explore the Family Name Slee

The meaning of Slee

1. English: variant of Sly. 2. English: from Middle English sle ‘grassy slope’ (Old English slēa). The surname may be topographic, for someone who lived on or by a grassy slope, or habitational, from a place so named, such as Slay Down in Enford (Wiltshire). 3. Americanized form of German Schlee.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Slee experienced a slight decline from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, the surname was ranked 28,353rd in terms of prevalence and was associated with 793 individuals, equating to approximately 0.29 per 100,000 people. By 2010, however, the rank had slipped to 30,570 and the count had dropped to 763, or roughly 0.26 per 100,000 people. This represents a change of -7.82 in ranking and -3.78 in count.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#28,353	#30,570	-7.82%
Count	793	763	-3.78%
Proportion per 100k	0.29	0.26	-10.34%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Slee

The ethnic identity associated with the surname Slee also shifted somewhat between 2000 and 2010, according to the Decennial U.S. Census data. In 2000, the majority of bearers of the surname identified as White (94.96%), followed by smaller proportions identifying as Hispanic (2.02%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.01%). A small number also identified with two or more races (1.01%). However, by 2010, while the majority still identified as White (90.69%), there was an increase in those identifying as Hispanic (4.06%) and those claiming two or more racial identities (2.88%). Additionally, a small percentage of bearers of the surname identified as Black (1.18%) for the first time in the census records.

	2000	2010	Change
White	94.96%	90.69%	-4.5%
Hispanic	2.02%	4.06%	100.99%
Two or More Races	1.01%	2.88%	185.15%
Black	0%	1.18%	0%
Asian/Pacific Islander	1.01%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%