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Tay Family History

Tay Surname Meaning

English (Warwickshire Worcestershire and Staffordshire): variant of Tee. Jewish (from Poland): metonymic occupational name for a tea merchant from central Yiddish tay ‘tea’. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 鄭 probably representing its Teochew Hokkien and Taiwanese pronunciation. See Zheng.

Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 謝 see Xie. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 戴 see Dai. Vietnamese (Tẩy): from the Chinese surname 冼 see Xian.

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


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Where is the Tay family from?

You can see how Tay families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Tay family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Tay families were found in USA in 1920. In 1891 there were 59 Tay families living in London. This was about 17% of all the recorded Tay's in United Kingdom. London had the highest population of Tay families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Tay 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 Tay ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, Insurance Agent and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Tay. 60% of Tay men worked as an Insurance Agent and 83% of Tay women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Tay were Bricklayers Labourer and Office Cleaner.

View Census Data for Tay | 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

  • Insurance Agent
    60%
  • Bricklayers Labourer
    40%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    83%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    9%
  • Unpaid Domestic Dut
    6%
  • Office Cleaner
    4%

What Tay family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 14,000 census records available for the last name Tay. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Tay census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Tay

Passenger Lists

There are 3,000 immigration records available for the last name Tay. 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 Tay immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 6,000 military records available for the last name Tay. For the veterans among your Tay ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Tay military records

You've only scratched the surface of Tay family history

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What is the average Tay lifespan?

Between 1963 and 2004, in the United States, Tay life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1966, and highest in 1983. The average life expectancy for Tay in 1963 was 71, and 76 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Tay

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Tay 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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