Census definitions

Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CENSUS, n.
1. In ancient Rome, an authentic declaration made before the censors, by the citizens, of their names and places of abode. This declaration was registered, and contained an enumeration of all their lands and estates, their quantity and quality, with the wives, children, domestics, tenants, and slaves of each citizen. Hence the word signifies this enumeration or register, a mans whole substance, and the tax imposed according to each mans property.
2. In the United States of America, an-enumeration of the inhabitants of all the States, taken by order of the Congress, to furnish the rule of apportioning the representation among the States, and the number of representatives to which each State is entitled in the Congress; also, an enumeration of the inhabitants of a State, taken by order of its legislature.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a periodic count of the population [syn: census, nose count, nosecount] v
1: conduct a census; "They censused the deer in the forest"

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Latin, from cens?re Date: 1634 1. a count of the population and a property evaluation in early Rome 2. a usually complete enumeration of a population; specifically a periodic governmental enumeration of population 3. count, tally • census transitive verb

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. (pl. censuses) the official count of a population or of a class of things, often with various statistics noted. Etymology: L f. censere assess

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Census Cen"sus, n. [L. census, fr. censere. See Censor.] 1. (Bot. Antiq.) A numbering of the people, and valuation of their estate, for the purpose of imposing taxes, etc.; -- usually made once in five years. 2. An official registration of the number of the people, the value of their estates, and other general statistics of a country. Note: A general census of the United States was first taken in 1790, and one has been taken at the end of every ten years since.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(censuses) A census is an official survey of the population of a country that is carried out in order to find out how many people live there and to obtain details of such things as people's ages and jobs. N-COUNT

Easton's Bible Dictionary

There are five instances of a census of the Jewish people having been taken. (1.) In the fourth month after the Exodus, when the people were encamped at Sinai. The number of men from twenty years old and upward was then 603,550 (Ex. 38:26). (2.) Another census was made just before the entrance into Canaan, when the number was found to be 601,730, showing thus a small decrease (Num. 26:51). (3.) The next census was in the time of David, when the number, exclusive of the tribes of Levi and Benjamin, was found to be 1,300,000 (2 Sam. 24:9; 1 Chr. 21:5). (4.) Solomon made a census of the foreigners in the land, and found 153,600 able-bodied workmen (2 Chr. 2:17, 18). (5.) After the return from Exile the whole congregation of Israel was numbered, and found to amount to 42,360 (Ezra 2:64). A census was made by the Roman government in the time of our Lord (Luke 2:1). (See TAXING.)

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

sen'-sus.

See DAVID; QUIRINIUS.

Moby Thesaurus

account, accounting, accounts, agenda, assemblage, assembly, beadroll, body count, cadastre, calendar, call-up, canvass, capitulation, census report, checklist, checkroll, code, collection, colligation, collocation, combination, comparison, composition, concourse, concurrence, confluence, conflux, congregation, constituents, content, contents, convergence, corralling, count, counting, dactylonomy, data-gathering, digest, divisions, docket, dramatis personae, elements, enumeration, foliation, gathering, guts, head count, honor roll, index, ingathering, ingredients, innards, insides, inventory, inventorying, items, junction, jury list, jury panel, juxtaposition, lineup, list, measurement, mobilization, muster, muster roll, nose count, numbering, numeration, order of business, pagination, part, parts, poll, program, property roll, quantification, quantization, questionnaire, recapitulation, reckoning, recount, recounting, rehearsal, repertory, returns, rodeo, roll, roll call, roster, rota, roundup, scroll, statement, summary, summation, summing, summing up, survey, table, table of organization, tallying, tax roll, telling, whole