2000
#3,355
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,743
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.61
Uncommon Last name
Abney
Derived from a place name meaning "Abba's island" in Old English, referring to someone who lived there.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,786 Americans carry the last name Abney. That puts it at #3,677 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 31,778 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Abney surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 31,778
Census rank
#3,677
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.4K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,406 bearers of the surname Abney in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3677th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Abney, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.2%. The next largest groups are Black (26.3%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Abney
The surname Abney has its origins in England, tracing back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word "aeppel-lea," which means "apple tree meadow" or "apple orchard." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name lived in areas with significant apple cultivation.
One of the earliest recorded references to the Abney surname can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire, dating back to 1273. This document mentions a person named William de Abney, indicating the surname's presence during that period.
In the 14th century, the Abney name appeared in various historical records, including the Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire from 1327, which listed a Robert de Abney. The Inquisitiones Post Mortem of Yorkshire from 1379 also mentioned a John de Abney.
The Abney surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded was John Abney (c. 1380-1450), an English landowner and Member of Parliament for Derbyshire during the reign of Henry VI.
Another prominent figure was Sir Thomas Abney (1639-1722), a wealthy English businessman and philanthropist who became Lord Mayor of London in 1700. He is known for providing a home for the renowned writer and preacher, Isaac Watts, during the latter part of Watts' life.
Edward Abney (1767-1841) was a British chemist and mineralogist who made significant contributions to the study of minerals and their classification. He served as the President of the Royal Society from 1827 to 1830.
William de Wiveleslie Abney (1843-1920) was a renowned English astronomer, chemist, and pioneer in the field of photography. He developed several photographic techniques and served as the President of the Royal Photographic Society from 1892 to 1894.
Sir Ralph Abney (1887-1962) was a British businessman and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Windsor from 1924 to 1945. He played a significant role in the development of the British aerospace industry.
The Abney surname has also been associated with several place names in England, such as Abney Park in Stoke Newington, London, and the village of Abney in Derbyshire. These place names likely derived from the surname itself or vice versa, reflecting the historical connections between the name and specific locations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Abney
Among Census respondents with the surname Abney, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.2%. The next largest groups are Black (26.3%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Abney bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Abney surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.2% · 6,137
- Black or African American26.3% · 2,475
- Two or more races4.1% · 381
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 299
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 60
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 54
Timeline
Historical Census data for Abney
Abney appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#3,579
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,948
+205 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 3.37
Rank movement Down 224 places
2020
#3,677
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,406
-542 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 3.15
Rank movement Down 98 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,355 | 9,743 | 3.61 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,579 | 9,948 | 3.37 | +205 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 224 places |
| 2020 | #3,677 | 9,406 | 3.15 | -542 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 98 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Abney surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #3,579 | #3,677 | -2.7% |
| Count | 9,948 | 9,406 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 3.37 | 3.15 | -6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Abney bearers went from 9,948 to 9,406 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 98 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,579 to #3,677.
FAQ
Abney surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Abney?
Name Census estimates that about 10,786 living Americans carry the surname Abney. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 31,778 residents.
How common is Abney?
Abney ranks #3,677 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.15 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,406 people with the surname Abney. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,786), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.15 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Abney.
Has Abney become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Abney went from 9,948 recorded bearers to 9,406. That is a decrease of 542 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,579 to #3,677.
What does the Census say about the background of Abney?
Among Census respondents with the surname Abney, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.2%. The next largest groups are Black (26.3%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Abney in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.2% (6,137 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Abney appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.2%), Black (26.3%), Two or More Races (4.1%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Abney (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Abney mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "Abba's island" in Old English, referring to someone who lived there. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Abney (3.15 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Abney?
Find out how many people have the last name Abney on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.