2000
#147,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Basquill
A variant form of the Scottish surname Baskerville, from the Old English language, referring to origins in the Basque region of Northern Spain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 119 Americans carry the last name Basquill. That puts it at #153,590 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,880,289 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Basquill 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.
Bearers in the US
119
1 in 2,880,289
Census rank
#153,590
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
104
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 104 bearers of the surname Basquill in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 153590th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Basquill, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Basquill
The surname Basquill is believed to have originated in the Basque region of northern Spain and southern France, dating back to the medieval period. The name is thought to be derived from the Basque language, where "baso" means forest or woodland, and "kil" refers to a place or location, potentially indicating that the name was originally a descriptive term for someone who lived near or worked in a forested area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Navarre Comptos, a series of financial records from the Kingdom of Navarre, where a certain Sancho Basquill was mentioned as a taxpayer in the year 1366. It is likely that the name had already been in use for several generations by this point.
In the 15th century, the name appears in various Spanish and French records, often with slight variations in spelling, such as Basquill, Basquille, or Basquiel. One notable individual from this period was Pedro Basquill, a merchant from Pamplona who was involved in trade with the city of Barcelona in the late 1400s.
As the Basque people migrated and settled in other regions, the name spread across Europe and eventually to the Americas. In the 16th century, there are records of Basquills living in England, with a John Basquill being listed in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, in 1582.
During the colonial era, several Basquills made their way to the New World. One of the earliest was Juan Basquill, a Basque sailor who is believed to have accompanied explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo on his voyage to what is now California in 1542-1543.
Another notable figure was Domingo Basquill, a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the conquest of Florida in the late 16th century under the command of Hernando de Soto. Basquill is said to have been part of the expedition that discovered the Mississippi River in 1541.
In the 18th century, the name appeared in various places across Europe and the Americas. One prominent individual was François Basquill, a French diplomat and writer who served as a secretary to the French ambassador in London in the 1770s.
As the centuries progressed, the Basquill name continued to be carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions. While not an exhaustive list, some other notable Basquills throughout history include:
1. Miguel Basquill, a Spanish priest and missionary who worked in California in the early 19th century.
2. James Basquill, a British merchant and philanthropist active in London in the late 18th century.
3. Antonia Basquill, a renowned Spanish opera singer who performed in major European cities in the mid-19th century.
4. William Basquill, an American author and journalist who wrote for several newspapers in the late 19th century.
5. Eliza Basquill, a British painter and artist known for her landscape paintings in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Basquill
Among Census respondents with the surname Basquill, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Basquill 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 Basquill surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino5.8% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Basquill
Basquill 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
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
+4 bearers (+3.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,533 places
2020
#153,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-3 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 962 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #147,095 | 103 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.9%) | Down 5,533 places |
| 2020 | #153,590 | 104 | 0.03 | -3 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 962 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 Basquill 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 | #152,628 | #153,590 | -0.6% |
| Count | 107 | 104 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Basquill bearers went from 107 to 104 (-2.8% change). The surname moved down 962 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #153,590.
FAQ
Basquill surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Basquill?
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the surname Basquill. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,880,289 residents.
How common is Basquill?
Basquill ranks #153,590 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 104 people with the surname Basquill. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (119), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Basquill.
Has Basquill become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Basquill went from 107 recorded bearers to 104. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #152,628 to #153,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Basquill?
Among Census respondents with the surname Basquill, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). 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 Basquill in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Basquill appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Hispanic (5.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). 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 Basquill (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 Basquill mean?
A variant form of the Scottish surname Baskerville, from the Old English language, referring to origins in the Basque region of Northern Spain. 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 Basquill (0.03 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 Basquill?
Want to know how many people are called Basquill? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.