2000
#8,300
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,671
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.36
Rare Last name
Billington
A habitational surname derived from any of several places in England meaning "settlement of Billa's people."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,047 Americans carry the last name Billington. That puts it at #8,902 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 84,693 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Billington 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 Billington with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 84,693
Census rank
#8,902
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,529 bearers of the surname Billington in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8902nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Billington, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.1%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Billington
The surname Billington is of English origin, derived from the place name Billington, a village in the Ribble Valley district of Lancashire. The name is believed to have originated in the 12th or 13th century, with the earliest known spelling being "Billingeton" or "Bilinton."
The name Billington is thought to be derived from the Old English words "billing" or "billingr," which means "hill" or "ridge," and "tun," meaning "farm" or "enclosure." Thus, the name literally translates to "the farm or enclosure on the hill or ridge."
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the surname Billington can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lancashire, a historical record dating back to 1176-1177. The name is also mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Lancashire in 1246, referring to a person named Richard de Billington.
In the 13th century, a family bearing the name Billington held lands in the township of Billington, near Whalley in Lancashire. This suggests that the surname may have originated from this particular location.
One notable historical figure with the surname Billington was John Billington, who was born around 1580. He was a passenger on the Mayflower and one of the earliest settlers of the Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts. Billington is often referred to as the first person convicted of murder in the American colonies.
Another significant individual with the Billington surname was Thomas Billington, a 17th-century English composer and organist. He was born around 1625 and served as the organist at Westminster Abbey from 1665 until his death in 1684.
In the 18th century, William Billington, a British tenor singer, was born in 1746. He gained fame for his performances in operas and concerts across Europe.
The 19th century saw the birth of Elizabeth Billington, a renowned English operatic soprano, in 1768. She was highly celebrated for her performances in major opera houses throughout Europe and is considered one of the finest English sopranos of her time.
Lastly, Samuel Billington, a British artist and painter, was born in 1847. He is best known for his landscape paintings, particularly those depicting scenes from the Lake District in England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Billington
Among Census respondents with the surname Billington, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.1%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Billington 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 Billington surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.1% · 2,969
- Black or African American7.4% · 262
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 132
- Two or more races3.7% · 130
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Billington
Billington 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
#8,904
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,678
+7 bearers (+0.2%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Down 604 places
2020
#8,902
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,529
-149 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 1.18
Rank movement Up 2 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,300 | 3,671 | 1.36 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,904 | 3,678 | 1.25 | +7 bearers (+0.2%) | Down 604 places |
| 2020 | #8,902 | 3,529 | 1.18 | -149 bearers (-4.1%) | Up 2 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 Billington 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 | #8,904 | #8,902 | 0.0% |
| Count | 3,678 | 3,529 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.25 | 1.18 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Billington bearers went from 3,678 to 3,529 (-4.1% change). The surname moved up 2 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,904 to #8,902.
FAQ
Billington surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Billington?
Name Census estimates that about 4,047 living Americans carry the surname Billington. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 84,693 residents.
How common is Billington?
Billington ranks #8,902 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.18 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 3,529 people with the surname Billington. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,047), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.18 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 Billington.
Has Billington become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Billington went from 3,678 recorded bearers to 3,529. That is a decrease of 149 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,904 to #8,902.
What does the Census say about the background of Billington?
Among Census respondents with the surname Billington, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.1%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Billington in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.1% (2,969 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Billington appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.1%), Black (7.4%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Billington (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 Billington mean?
A habitational surname derived from any of several places in England meaning "settlement of Billa's people." 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 Billington (1.18 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 Billington?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.