2000
#8,643
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,503
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.30
Rare Last name
Averill
From the Old French "Avril," referring to someone born or baptized in April, or from a place name meaning "April town."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,729 Americans carry the last name Averill. That puts it at #9,557 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 91,916 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Averill 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 Averill with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.7K
1 in 91,916
Census rank
#9,557
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,252 bearers of the surname Averill in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9557th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Averill, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Averill
The surname Averill is of English origin, deriving from the Old English words "aefre" meaning "ever" and "rill" meaning "stream". It is believed to have originated in the 12th century and referred to someone who lived near a permanent or ever-flowing stream.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire from 1195, which mention a Ralph Averill. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 also contain a reference to a Walter de Averill from Oxfordshire.
The surname Averill is closely linked to various place names in England, such as Averill in Gloucestershire and Averill's Brook in Wiltshire. These place names likely influenced the spelling variations of the surname, including Averell, Averall, and Avrill.
During the 13th century, the name appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Berkshire, where a Roger Averill was recorded. In the 14th century, the Poll Tax returns of Yorkshire mentioned a Johannes Averill in 1379.
Notable individuals with the surname Averill throughout history include Thomas Averill (c.1550-1638), an English poet and clergyman, and William Averill (1720-1790), a loyalist during the American Revolutionary War who later became a Member of Parliament in Nova Scotia.
Other historical figures bearing the surname include George Averill (1789-1870), an American farmer and politician who served as a U.S. Representative from New York, and John Thomas Averill (1825-1889), a Union Army officer during the American Civil War, known for his role in the Battle of Gettysburg.
In the 19th century, John Averill (1808-1889) was a prominent Canadian merchant and entrepreneur, while Samuel Averill (1799-1859) was an American lawyer and judge who served as a member of the New York State Assembly.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Averill
Among Census respondents with the surname Averill, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Averill 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 Averill surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 2,979
- Two or more races3.4% · 110
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 102
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 32
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 15
- Black or African American0.4% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Averill
Averill 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
#9,227
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,529
+26 bearers (+0.7%)
Per 100,000 1.20
Rank movement Down 584 places
2020
#9,557
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,252
-277 bearers (-7.8%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Down 330 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,643 | 3,503 | 1.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,227 | 3,529 | 1.20 | +26 bearers (+0.7%) | Down 584 places |
| 2020 | #9,557 | 3,252 | 1.09 | -277 bearers (-7.8%) | Down 330 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 Averill 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 | #9,227 | #9,557 | -3.6% |
| Count | 3,529 | 3,252 | -7.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.20 | 1.09 | -9.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Averill bearers went from 3,529 to 3,252 (-7.8% change). The surname moved down 330 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,227 to #9,557.
FAQ
Averill surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Averill?
Name Census estimates that about 3,729 living Americans carry the surname Averill. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 91,916 residents.
How common is Averill?
Averill ranks #9,557 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.09 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,252 people with the surname Averill. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,729), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.09 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Averill.
Has Averill become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Averill went from 3,529 recorded bearers to 3,252. That is a decrease of 277 (-7.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,227 to #9,557.
What does the Census say about the background of Averill?
Among Census respondents with the surname Averill, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Averill in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (2,979 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Averill appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Averill (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 Averill mean?
From the Old French "Avril," referring to someone born or baptized in April, or from a place name meaning "April town." 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 Averill (1.09 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 are called Averill?
For a quick modern take, check how common the surname Averill is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.