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Straker Family History

Straker Name Meaning

English:: occupational name from Middle English straker streker unrecorded derivatives of northern Middle English straken (Old English strācian) ‘to stroke or rub (something) to smear (something with a substance)’ and Middle English streken (Old Norse strjúka) ‘to stroke make smooth spread or smear (a substance) evenly’. In some instances straker streker may have denoted a waxer of shoe-leather or a sharpener of knives. In other cases a straker or streker may have been a polisher of goods made of wood metal or other materials or he may have been an official corn measurer who used a flat stick or strike to level off the quantity of corn he was measuring. See also the etymologically related Striker and Stroker which were probably to some extent synonymous and interchangeable with Straker. perhaps an occupational name for someone who made iron strakes in a smithy or for someone who used strakes to make wheels or plowshares. This would be a plausible though unrecorded derivative of Middle English strake (Old English stracca) ‘band strip strake’ most often used to denote the strips of iron that formed the rim of a cartwheel or that fastened a plowshare. Middle English strake also denoted a wooden plank including the planking on a ship's hull so the surname could also have been given to someone who made planks or who built ships. However there is no contextual evidence to confirm either of these possibilities.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Staker, Stryker, Striker, Strike, Stakes, Spraker, Stalker, Stamer

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Where is the Straker family from?

You can see how Straker families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Straker family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Straker families were found in United Kingdom in 1891. In 1891 there were 129 Straker families living in Northumberland. This was about 25% of all the recorded Straker's in United Kingdom. Northumberland had the highest population of Straker families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Straker surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Straker ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, Master Printer and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Straker. 19% of Straker men worked as a Master Printer and 77% of Straker women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Straker were Insurance Clerk and Domestic Duties. .

View Census Data for Straker | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1939

  • Master Printer
    19%
  • Joiner
    12%
  • Wood Machinist
    12%
  • Insurance Clerk
    8%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    77%
  • Private Means
    6%
  • Incapacitated
    5%
  • Domestic Duties
    3%
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What Straker family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 17,000 census records available for the last name Straker. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Straker census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Straker

Passenger Lists

There are 2,000 immigration records available for the last name Straker. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Straker immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 1,000 military records available for the last name Straker. For the veterans among your Straker ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Straker lifespan?

Between 1959 and 2004, in the United States, Straker life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1961, and highest in 2002. The average life expectancy for Straker in 1959 was 60, and 72 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Straker

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