2000
#19,587
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,274
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.47
Rare Last name
Beswick
A surname derived from a place name meaning "dweller at the bent-ridge meadow" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,518 Americans carry the last name Beswick. That puts it at #20,298 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.44 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 225,793 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Beswick 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 Beswick with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.5K
1 in 225,793
Census rank
#20,298
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,324 bearers of the surname Beswick in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.44 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 20298th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Beswick, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Black (8.5%) and Hispanic (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Beswick
The surname Beswick has its origins in England, tracing back to the medieval period. It is a locational name, derived from the place name Beswick, which itself comes from the Old English words "besc" meaning "a bush" and "wic" meaning "a dwelling" or "village." This suggests that the name originated from people who hailed from a settlement or village surrounded by bushes or thickets.
The earliest recorded instance of the name Beswick can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of land ownership and property values commissioned by William the Conqueror. In this record, the name appears as "Beswic," referring to a place in Staffordshire.
Over time, the name evolved through various spellings, including Beswyke, Besewyke, and Beswicke, before settling into its modern form of Beswick. Some of these variants were influenced by regional dialects and the personal preferences of scribes who recorded the name.
One notable individual bearing the Beswick name was John Beswick (c. 1501–1567), an English clergyman who served as the Archdeacon of Norfolk. Another was Sir William Beswick (1588–1646), a prominent English soldier and landowner who fought in the English Civil War.
In the 18th century, Thomas Beswick (1740–1832) founded the renowned Beswick Pottery in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. This company became renowned for its high-quality ceramics and figurines, particularly those depicting animals and horses.
Moving into the 19th century, we encounter Samuel Beswick (1807–1876), an English industrialist and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the development of the city of Manchester.
Finally, in the 20th century, there was Walter Beswick (1900–1988), a British artist known for his landscape paintings and depictions of rural life in England.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have carried the surname Beswick throughout history, showcasing the name's longevity and its deep roots in English heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Beswick
Among Census respondents with the surname Beswick, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Black (8.5%) and Hispanic (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Beswick 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 Beswick surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.1% · 1,100
- Black or African American8.5% · 112
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 60
- Two or more races3.1% · 41
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Beswick
Beswick 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
#20,248
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,314
+40 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 0.45
Rank movement Down 661 places
2020
#20,298
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,324
+10 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.44
Rank movement Down 50 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #19,587 | 1,274 | 0.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #20,248 | 1,314 | 0.45 | +40 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 661 places |
| 2020 | #20,298 | 1,324 | 0.44 | +10 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 50 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 Beswick 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 | #20,248 | #20,298 | -0.2% |
| Count | 1,314 | 1,324 | 0.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.45 | 0.44 | -1.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Beswick bearers went from 1,314 to 1,324 (+0.8% change). The surname moved down 50 positions in the national ranking, going from #20,248 to #20,298.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Beswick
FAQ
Beswick surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Beswick?
Name Census estimates that about 1,518 living Americans carry the surname Beswick. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 225,793 residents.
How common is Beswick?
Beswick ranks #20,298 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.44 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 1,324 people with the surname Beswick. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,518), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.44 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.44 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 Beswick.
Has Beswick become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Beswick went from 1,314 recorded bearers to 1,324. That is an increase of 10 (+0.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #20,248 to #20,298.
What does the Census say about the background of Beswick?
Among Census respondents with the surname Beswick, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Black (8.5%) and Hispanic (4.5%). 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 Beswick in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.1% (1,100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Beswick appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.1%), Black (8.5%), Hispanic (4.5%). 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 Beswick (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 Beswick mean?
A surname derived from a place name meaning "dweller at the bent-ridge meadow" in Old English. 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 Beswick (0.44 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 Americans have the surname Beswick?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.