2000
#5,737
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,532
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.05
Rare Last name
Appleby
A locational surname derived from places in England meaning "farm or orchard where apples are grown."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,026 Americans carry the last name Appleby. That puts it at #6,242 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 56,879 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Appleby 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Appleby with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.0K
1 in 56,879
Census rank
#6,242
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,255 bearers of the surname Appleby in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6242nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Appleby, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.9%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Appleby
The surname Appleby has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. It is a locational name, derived from the town of Appleby in Westmorland, now part of Cumbria. The name itself is believed to come from the Old Norse words "apall" meaning apple and "by" meaning a farmstead or village, suggesting it was originally a place where apples were grown or cultivated.
Appleby is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, the earliest comprehensive record of landholdings and population in England, indicating the long-standing presence of this name. The town of Appleby itself was an important market town during the Middle Ages and was granted a charter by King Henry II in the late 12th century.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Appleby was William de Appelby, who was mentioned in the Curia Regis Rolls for Yorkshire in 1212. Other early references include Robert de Appleby, a cleric who served as the Bishop of Carlisle from 1363 to 1395, and Sir Edmund Appleby (c.1370-1448), a prominent English soldier who fought in the Hundred Years' War and was later made a Knight of the Garter.
In the 16th century, John Appleby (c.1500-1568) was an English Protestant reformer and scholar who served as the chaplain to Edward VI and later as the Archbishop of Canterbury's chaplain. Another notable figure was Andrew Appleby (1564-1628), an English clergyman who became the Bishop of Bangor and later the Bishop of Carlisle.
During the English Civil War, Sir Henry Appleby (1594-1670) was a Royalist commander who fought for King Charles I and was later knighted for his services. In the 18th century, Leonard Appleby (1695-1772) was an English painter known for his landscapes and portraits.
Throughout history, the Appleby name has been associated with various places and locales where families with this surname resided or had connections. Examples include Appleby Parva and Appleby Magna in Leicestershire, Appleby in Lincolnshire, and Appleby in Derbyshire, among others. The name has also been recorded with various spellings, such as Applebie, Appulby, and Appilby, reflecting regional variations and changes over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Appleby
Among Census respondents with the surname Appleby, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.9%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Appleby 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 Appleby surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.5% · 4,491
- Black or African American6.9% · 363
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 185
- Two or more races3.2% · 169
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Appleby
Appleby 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
#6,161
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,556
+24 bearers (+0.4%)
Per 100,000 1.88
Rank movement Down 424 places
2020
#6,242
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,255
-301 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 1.76
Rank movement Down 81 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,737 | 5,532 | 2.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,161 | 5,556 | 1.88 | +24 bearers (+0.4%) | Down 424 places |
| 2020 | #6,242 | 5,255 | 1.76 | -301 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 81 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 Appleby 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 | #6,161 | #6,242 | -1.3% |
| Count | 5,556 | 5,255 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.88 | 1.76 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Appleby bearers went from 5,556 to 5,255 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 81 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,161 to #6,242.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Appleby
FAQ
Appleby surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Appleby?
Name Census estimates that about 6,026 living Americans carry the surname Appleby. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 56,879 residents.
How common is Appleby?
Appleby ranks #6,242 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.76 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,255 people with the surname Appleby. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,026), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.76 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Appleby.
Has Appleby become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Appleby went from 5,556 recorded bearers to 5,255. That is a decrease of 301 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,161 to #6,242.
What does the Census say about the background of Appleby?
Among Census respondents with the surname Appleby, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.9%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Appleby in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.5% (4,491 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Appleby appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.5%), Black (6.9%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Appleby (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 Appleby mean?
A locational surname derived from places in England meaning "farm or orchard where apples are grown." 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 Appleby (1.76 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 Appleby?
You can see how many Americans have the surname Appleby on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.