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Prater Family History

Prater Surname Meaning

English (southern): nickname from Middle English prater ‘chatterer’. English (southern): occupational name for a reeve, the chief magistrate or bailiff of a district, from Middle English preto(u)r, borrowed from Latin praetor.

Dutch: occupational name for a warden of meadows or a gamekeeper from Middle Dutch prater, preter (from Latin pratarius, a derivative of pratum ‘meadow’).

Dutch and North German: nickname for an excessively talkative person from Middle Low German praten ‘to talk or prattle’.

German: variant of Brater (see Brader).

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


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Where is the Prater family from?

You can see how Prater families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Prater family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Prater families were found in USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 26 Prater families living in Ontario. This was about 70% of all the recorded Prater's in Canada. Ontario had the highest population of Prater families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Prater 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 Prater ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Housekeeper were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Prater. 25% of Prater men worked as a Farmer and 7% of Prater women worked as a Housekeeper. Some less common occupations for Americans named Prater were Salesman and Seamstress.

View Census Data for Prater | 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.

United States shown, Canada data unavailable

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Farmer
    25%
  • Laborer
    19%
  • Farm Laborer
    4%
  • Salesman
    4%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Housekeeper
    7%
  • Maid
    7%
  • Housewife
    6%
  • Seamstress
    6%

What Prater family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 54,000 census records available for the last name Prater. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Prater census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search Canadian census records for Prater

Passenger Lists

There are 1,000 immigration records available for the last name Prater. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in Canada, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Prater immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 11,000 military records available for the last name Prater. For the veterans among your Prater ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Prater military records

You've only scratched the surface of Prater family history

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What is the average Prater lifespan?

Between 1942 and 2004, in the United States, Prater life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1950, and highest in 1989. The average life expectancy for Prater in 1942 was 36, and 72 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Prater

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Prater 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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