2000
#9,062
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,317
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.23
Rare Last name
Benning
A toponymic surname referring to someone from a place called Benning, derived from a Germanic personal name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,815 Americans carry the last name Benning. That puts it at #9,380 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.11 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 89,844 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Benning 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 Benning with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.8K
1 in 89,844
Census rank
#9,380
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,327 bearers of the surname Benning in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.11 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9380th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Benning, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.8%. The next largest groups are Black (22.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Benning
The surname Benning has its origins in England, dating back to the late medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "benn" and "ing," which together roughly translate to "the dweller by the hill or ridge." This suggests that the name initially referred to someone who lived near a prominent hill or ridge.
In its earliest recorded form, the name was spelled "Bennynge," as evidenced by its appearance in the Domesday Book of 1086, a famous survey of land ownership and wealth commissioned by William the Conqueror. This document mentions a landowner named Robertus Bennynge in the county of Essex.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir John Benning, a prominent English knight who lived in the 14th century. He is recorded as having participated in the Battle of Crécy during the Hundred Years' War in 1346.
Another notable individual with this surname was William Benning, a merchant and alderman in the City of London in the 16th century. He was born in 1525 and served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1583-1584.
During the English Civil War in the 17th century, Colonel John Benning was a prominent Royalist commander who fought for King Charles I against the Parliamentarians. He was born around 1600 and was killed in action at the Battle of Alresford in 1644.
In the 18th century, Henry Benning was a successful English architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Ironmongers' Hall and the Church of St. Mary Woolnoth. He was born in 1698 and died in 1776.
The surname Benning has also been associated with several place names in England, such as Benning Hill in the county of Suffolk and Benning's Green in the county of Kent. These locations may have derived their names from individuals bearing the Benning surname who lived in or owned land in those areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Benning
Among Census respondents with the surname Benning, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.8%. The next largest groups are Black (22.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Benning 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 Benning surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.8% · 2,257
- Black or African American22.8% · 758
- Two or more races5.4% · 178
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 104
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Benning
Benning 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
#9,085
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,597
+280 bearers (+8.4%)
Per 100,000 1.22
Rank movement Down 23 places
2020
#9,380
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,327
-270 bearers (-7.5%)
Per 100,000 1.11
Rank movement Down 295 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,062 | 3,317 | 1.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,085 | 3,597 | 1.22 | +280 bearers (+8.4%) | Down 23 places |
| 2020 | #9,380 | 3,327 | 1.11 | -270 bearers (-7.5%) | Down 295 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 Benning 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 | #9,085 | #9,380 | -3.2% |
| Count | 3,597 | 3,327 | -7.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.22 | 1.11 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Benning bearers went from 3,597 to 3,327 (-7.5% change). The surname moved down 295 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,085 to #9,380.
FAQ
Benning surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Benning?
Name Census estimates that about 3,815 living Americans carry the surname Benning. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 89,844 residents.
How common is Benning?
Benning ranks #9,380 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.11 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 3,327 people with the surname Benning. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,815), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.11 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.11 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 Benning.
Has Benning become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Benning went from 3,597 recorded bearers to 3,327. That is a decrease of 270 (-7.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,085 to #9,380.
What does the Census say about the background of Benning?
Among Census respondents with the surname Benning, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.8%. The next largest groups are Black (22.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%). 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 Benning in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.8% (2,257 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Benning appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.8%), Black (22.8%), Two or More Races (5.4%). 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 Benning (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 Benning mean?
A toponymic surname referring to someone from a place called Benning, derived from a Germanic personal name. 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 Benning (1.11 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 common is the surname Benning?
See how common the surname Benning is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.