2000
#14,030
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,972
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.73
Rare Last name
Bickerstaff
An English occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold candle wicks or candle sticks.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,132 Americans carry the last name Bickerstaff. That puts it at #15,207 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 160,767 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bickerstaff 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 Bickerstaff with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.1K
1 in 160,767
Census rank
#15,207
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,859 bearers of the surname Bickerstaff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15207th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bickerstaff, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bickerstaff
The surname Bickerstaff is of English origin, emerging in the 14th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "bicker" meaning a small wooden vessel or bowl, and "staef" meaning staff or stick. This suggests the name may have referred to a maker or seller of wooden bowls and utensils.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Returns of 1379, where a John Bykerstalfe is listed. The surname is also found in various forms such as Bykerstaffe, Bykerstaf, and Bickerstath in medieval records from Lancashire and Yorkshire.
In the 16th century, the Bickerstaff family was well-established in Cheshire, with records showing a Thomas Bickerstaff born around 1560 in Middlewich. His grandson, Isaac Bickerstaff (1634-1708), was a noted English satirist and pamphleteer who used the pseudonym "Isaac Bickerstaff" to mock astrologers and almanac makers of the time.
Another notable bearer of the name was the 18th-century playwright and poet Isaac Bickerstaffe (1733-1812), who is sometimes confused with his namesake, the satirist. Bickerstaffe wrote several successful comedies and operas, including the popular play 'The Recruiting Officer' (1706).
In the 19th century, the Bickerstaff family had connections to the textile industry in Lancashire. A prominent figure was Sir Isaac William Bickerstaffe (1815-1898), a successful cotton manufacturer and philanthropist who served as the Mayor of Blackburn in 1864.
Other historical figures with the surname include Sir Robert Bickerstaffe (1722-1796), a British naval officer who served in the Seven Years' War, and John Bickerstaffe (1858-1940), a Canadian politician and businessman who served as the Mayor of Winnipeg in the early 20th century.
Overall, the surname Bickerstaff has a rich history spanning several centuries, with its origins rooted in the ancient English vocabulary and the trades of woodworking and utensil-making. Despite variations in spelling, the name has endured and been carried by notable individuals in fields ranging from literature and politics to industry and military service.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bickerstaff
Among Census respondents with the surname Bickerstaff, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Bickerstaff 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 Bickerstaff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.1% · 1,452
- Black or African American13.4% · 250
- Two or more races4.4% · 81
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 49
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bickerstaff
Bickerstaff 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
#14,749
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,014
+42 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Down 719 places
2020
#15,207
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,859
-155 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Down 458 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,030 | 1,972 | 0.73 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,749 | 2,014 | 0.68 | +42 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 719 places |
| 2020 | #15,207 | 1,859 | 0.62 | -155 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 458 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 Bickerstaff 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 | #14,749 | #15,207 | -3.1% |
| Count | 2,014 | 1,859 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.68 | 0.62 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bickerstaff bearers went from 2,014 to 1,859 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 458 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,749 to #15,207.
FAQ
Bickerstaff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bickerstaff?
Name Census estimates that about 2,132 living Americans carry the surname Bickerstaff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 160,767 residents.
How common is Bickerstaff?
Bickerstaff ranks #15,207 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.62 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 1,859 people with the surname Bickerstaff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,132), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.62 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 Bickerstaff.
Has Bickerstaff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bickerstaff went from 2,014 recorded bearers to 1,859. That is a decrease of 155 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,749 to #15,207.
What does the Census say about the background of Bickerstaff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bickerstaff, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Bickerstaff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.1% (1,452 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bickerstaff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.1%), Black (13.4%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Bickerstaff (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 Bickerstaff mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold candle wicks or candle sticks. 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 Bickerstaff (0.62 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 Bickerstaff?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.