Ackroyd last name popularity, history, and meaning

Find out how popular the last name Ackroyd is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Ackroyd.

Meaning of Ackroyd

From the oak tree, referring to someone who lived near an oak tree or in an oak forest.

Ackroyd, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Ackroyd surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ackroyd in America

Ackroyd is the 40204th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ackroyd surname appeared 545 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Ackroyd.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ackroyd to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 40204 37788 6.20%
Count 545 553 -1.46%
Proportion per 100k 0.18 0.20 -10.53%

The history of the last name Ackroyd

The surname Ackroyd is of English origin, derived from a place name. It is believed to have originated in the Yorkshire region of England, specifically in the areas around Leeds and Bradford, during the medieval period.

The name Ackroyd is thought to be derived from the Old English words "ac" (oak) and "rod" (clearing), suggesting it was initially given to someone who lived near an oak clearing or oak-lined rode. This name's earliest recorded spelling dates back to the 13th century, with variations such as Acrode, Acrod, and Ackerode.

One of the earliest known references to the name Ackroyd can be found in the Wakefield Court Rolls of 1275, which mentions a William de Acrode. Additionally, the Domesday Book, the great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, includes several place names that may have given rise to the surname, such as Acreworth and Acreham.

Notable individuals with the surname Ackroyd throughout history include:

  1. Roger Ackroyd (c.1350-1419), a wealthy English merchant and landowner from Yorkshire.
  2. William Ackroyd (1617-1680), an English Puritan minister and author.
  3. Edward Ackroyd (1782-1868), a Yorkshire industrialist and inventor of the spinning mule.
  4. Peter Ackroyd (born 1949), a renowned English biographer, novelist, and critic.
  5. Dan Ackroyd (born 1952), the Canadian actor, comedian, and filmmaker best known for his work on "Saturday Night Live" and the "Ghostbusters" movies.

The name Ackroyd has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Ackroyd Hall in Yorkshire, Ackroyd Farm in Cheshire, and the village of Acrod in Derbyshire, further reinforcing its connection to the region's geography and history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ackroyd

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Ackroyd.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

  1. White only
  2. Black only
  3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
  4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
  5. Hispanic
  6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Ackroyd was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 96.70% 527
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 0.92% 5
Hispanic Origin 1.83% 10

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Ackroyd has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 96.70% 97.65% -0.98%
Black (S)% 0.00% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 0.92% 0.90% 2.20%
Hispanic 1.83% 0.90% 68.13%

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Ackroyd was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Ackroyd, please contact us.

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"Ackroyd last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on July 27, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/ackroyd-surname-popularity/.

"Ackroyd last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/ackroyd-surname-popularity/. Accessed 27 July, 2024

Ackroyd last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/ackroyd-surname-popularity/.

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