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

Afton, 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 Afton surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Afton in America

Afton is the 78316th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Afton surname appeared 244 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 Afton.

We can also compare 2010 data for Afton 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.

The history of the last name Afton

The surname Afton originated in England, likely during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "afton," meaning "evening" or "after." The earliest known recorded instances of the name come from the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Aftun" and "Aftune," referring to settlements in various counties across England.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Afton surname was Sir Robert de Afton, a knight who lived in the 13th century and held lands in Derbyshire. The name was also found in various forms, such as "Aftone" and "Afftone," in medieval records and charters from counties like Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, and Staffordshire.

The Afton surname is also associated with several place names in England, such as Afton in Worcestershire and Afton in Shropshire. These locations likely derived their names from the Old English word "afton," and the surname may have originated as a locational name for individuals who hailed from these areas.

In Scotland, the Afton surname has a connection to the River Afton, a tributary of the River Nith in Ayrshire. The river's name is derived from the same Old English root, and it is possible that some Scottish bearers of the Afton surname may have ties to this geographic feature.

Notable individuals with the Afton surname throughout history include:

1. Robert Afton (c. 1570-1637), an English politician and lawyer who served as the Recorder of Chester.
2. John Afton (c. 1645-1701), an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works.
3. Mary Afton (c. 1700-1780), a British botanist and one of the earliest female members of the Royal Society.
4. William Afton (1772-1848), a Scottish poet and writer best known for his rural poetry collections.
5. James Afton (1815-1892), an American Civil War veteran and politician who served as a senator from Iowa.

While the Afton surname has its roots in medieval England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including North America, Australia, and New Zealand, carried by descendants of early English and Scottish settlers.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Afton

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

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 Afton was:

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 Afton has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

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

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

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