Adderton last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Adderton

Derived from a place name meaning "farmstead or village of a man called Ealdhere" in Old English.

Adderton, 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 Adderton surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Adderton in America

Adderton is the 159712th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Adderton surname appeared 101 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 Adderton.

The history of the last name Adderton

The surname "ADDERTON" is believed to have originated in England during the late medieval period. It is thought to be a locational name, derived from a place name referring to a settlement or town. The earliest known spelling of the name was "Addretone," which appeared in the Domesday Book of 1086, a survey of land and resources commissioned by William the Conqueror.

The name is likely derived from the Old English words "æddre" meaning "adder" or "snake," and "tun" meaning "enclosure" or "settlement." This suggests that the original place name may have been associated with an area known for its snakes or serpents. Alternatively, it could have been a reference to a specific landowner or individual known by a nickname related to snakes.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Pipe Rolls of Lancashire from 1176, which mention a William de Addretone. The name also appears in various records and documents throughout the 13th and 14th centuries, such as the Court Rolls of Walsall in Staffordshire from 1275, where a Robert de Addretone is mentioned.

Variations of the spelling include "Addertone," "Addriton," and "Addreton," among others. These variations likely arose due to differences in regional dialects and scribal interpretations over time.

Notable individuals with the surname "ADDERTON" include:

  1. John Adderton (c. 1480-1550), an English landowner and member of Parliament for Staffordshire in the early 16th century.
  2. Elizabeth Adderton (c. 1560-1620), an Englishwoman accused of witchcraft during the infamous Pendle Witch Trials in Lancashire in 1612.
  3. Thomas Adderton (1631-1703), an English Puritan minister and author who emigrated to New England in the late 17th century.
  4. William Adderton (1790-1867), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and later became an admiral.
  5. Margaret Adderton (1845-1920), an American educator and women's rights activist who campaigned for women's suffrage in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

While the surname "ADDERTON" is not among the most common in English-speaking countries today, it remains an enduring legacy of England's rich history and linguistic heritage.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Adderton

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

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 Adderton was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 42.57% 43
Non-Hispanic Black Only 53.47% 54
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 0.00% 0
Hispanic Origin (S)% (S)

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.

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 Adderton was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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"Adderton last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on February 16, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/adderton-surname-popularity/.

"Adderton last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/adderton-surname-popularity/. Accessed 16 February, 2025

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

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