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Filer Family History

Filer Surname Meaning

English: occupational name for a file maker or someone who files, smooths, or polishes something, from an -er derivative of Middle English filen ‘to file’.

English: occupational name for a spinner from Old French fileur ‘spinner’, a derivative of fil ‘thread’ (from Latin filum).

Americanized form of German Feiler, cognate with 1 above.

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


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Where is the Filer family from?

You can see how Filer families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Filer family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Filer families were found in United Kingdom in 1891. In 1891 there were 240 Filer families living in Somerset. This was about 37% of all the recorded Filer's in United Kingdom. Somerset had the highest population of Filer families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Filer surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Filer ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, General Labourer and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Filer. 12% of Filer men worked as a General Labourer and 79% of Filer women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Filer were Farm Labourer and Unpaid Domestic Du.

View Census Data for Filer | 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

  • General Labourer
    12%
  • Incapacitated
    9%
  • Bricklayer
    7%
  • Farm Labourer
    6%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    79%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    4%
  • Housewife
    3%
  • Unpaid Domestic Du
    2%

What Filer family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 27,000 census records available for the last name Filer. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Filer census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Filer

Passenger Lists

There are 1,000 immigration records available for the last name Filer. 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 Filer immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 3,000 military records available for the last name Filer. For the veterans among your Filer ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Filer military records

You've only scratched the surface of Filer family history

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What is the average Filer lifespan?

Between 1949 and 2004, in the United States, Filer life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1960, and highest in 1986. The average life expectancy for Filer in 1949 was 53, and 79 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Filer

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Filer ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.

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