The Chew surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,905 people carried this name — #3,988 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 33,100 people counted. That is up 5% from 8,516 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Chew surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of Chew’.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 176 · public domain.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

38 people named Chew live in Switzerland.

They live in 5 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Zurich 18
Basel-Stadt 6
Lucerne 5
Vaud 5
Valais 4

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In the Nordic population registers

22 people named Chew is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 22

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Chew was found among the farmers of Northamptonshire: 25 in every 10,000.

Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Northamptonshire 25

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

21 Chew families were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 106 people lived in those households, 5 to a family on average. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

Maryland 13
Virginia 4
Pennsylvania 2
North Carolina 1
South Carolina 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 233 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Chew in American newspapers,
1870–1911.

Newspaper page from The Rock Island Argus carrying the name Chew
The Rock Island Argus 1884-03-24
Newspaper page from The Weekly Oskaloosa Herald carrying the name Chew
The Weekly Oskaloosa Herald 1870-01-27
Newspaper page from The Washington Herald carrying the name Chew
The Washington Herald 1911-03-10

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 2,689 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Chew in Australian newspapers,
1840s–1990s.

10,455 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Chew. The most, 2,580, date from the 1910s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Victoria, at 1.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 4,802
Victoria 3,635
Queensland 1,218
South Australia 267
Tasmania 247
Western Australia 123
ACT (Canberra) 117
Northern Territory 6

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Chew.

Who carried it

People named Chew,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Sarah Bond Chew
    Sarah Bond Chew 1708–1769
  • Sarah Lock Chew
    Sarah Lock Chew 1721–1791
  • Benjamin Chew
    Benjamin Chew 1722–1810 · lawyer
  • Margaret Chew Bordley
    Margaret Chew Bordley 1735–1773
  • William Chew 1671–1710
  • Samuel Chew 1683–1736

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Chew,
in the records of 7 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States1,214 records

1,214 records of the Chew name in the United States
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 569
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 329
  • Other U.S. records 316
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Samuel S. Chew

    Born 1901 in New York. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Jay Governors Island; plumber from Suffolk County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1956, buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Berke Chew

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Scandia from Hamburg and Havre, aged 47; trader. From Kanin, Poland, Russia; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. A U.S. Army record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864
    Example: U.S. burial record, 1864
    Burial record Nelson J. Chew

    U.S. Army veteran of World War I. Born 1887, died 1966; buried at Golden Gate National Cemetery, California.

    U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)

Showing 3 of 1,214 records for Chew in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864, U.S. National Archives (public domain).

Australia202 records

202 records of the Chew name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 63
  • Tasmanian Names Index 62
  • Other Australian records 77
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record John Chew

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Ratcliffe, sailing from Spithead in 1848. Native of Bath, Somerset. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1852. Married 1853 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 24.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record George Chew

    Arrived in Victoria in 1852 aboard the Holyrood, aged 33; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Walter Eugene Chew

    Retired of South Yarra, Victoria; died 1973.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 202 records for Chew in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Canada92 records

92 records of the Chew name in Canada
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 56
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 24
  • Other Canadian records 12
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Able Chew

    Came to Ontario in 1874 aboard the Sarmatian, bound for Ingersoll, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record George Lew Mah Chew

    Buried in 1981 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 88.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record William Alfred Chew

    Died 1916 in Pictou, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 92 records for Chew in Canada.

Counts: City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom8 records

8 records of the Chew name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 7
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Mary Ann Chew

    Buried in 1826 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 53.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record W. D. Chew

    Hertfordshire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record T. C. Chew

    King's Own (Royal Lancaster Regiment). Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 8 records for Chew in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Netherlands4 records

4 records of the Chew name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 2
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 2
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Gun Chew

    Married in 1932 in Rotterdam. Died 1968 in Rotterdam, aged 79.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register William Edward Chew

    In the population register of Guben, Germany; born 1883 in Guben, Germany.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 4 records for Chew in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

New Zealand2 records

2 records of the Chew name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Chin Chew

    Died 1956, aged 60; buried at Sydenham Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 1 of 2 records for Chew in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

France2 records

2 records of the Chew name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record William Chew

    Born 1947 in Great Britain; died 2000 in Dunkerque (Nord).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Choy Chuen Chew

    Born 1966 in A Penang (Malaisie); died 1993 in Paris.

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Chew.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Chew is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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