2000
#11,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,476
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.92
Rare Last name
Birt
Derived from the Old English word "beorht," meaning "bright," referring to someone with a cheerful or lively disposition.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,762 Americans carry the last name Birt. That puts it at #12,324 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.81 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 124,096 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Birt 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 Birt with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.8K
1 in 124,096
Census rank
#12,324
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,409 bearers of the surname Birt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.81 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12324th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Birt, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Black (20.0%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Birt
The surname Birt is of English origin, derived from the Old English word 'byrht' meaning bright or shining. It is believed to have originated as a nickname for someone with a bright or radiant complexion or personality.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be traced back to the 13th century in various counties across southern England, including Somerset, Dorset, and Devon. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was William Birt, mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Somerset in 1268.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire, which documented landholders and their holdings. The entry mentions a John Birt, who held land in the village of Nettlebed.
The Birt surname has also been found in various historical records, including the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, where a Thomas Birt is listed as a taxpayer. Additionally, the name appears in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1380, with a Richard Birt recorded as a resident.
Variations in the spelling of the surname, such as Birte, Birt, and Byrte, can be found in various historical documents from different regions of England.
Notable individuals with the surname Birt include:
1. Sir Jonathan Birt (c. 1550-1614), an English merchant and the first Governor of the East India Company from 1601 to 1614.
2. William Radcliffe Birt (1804-1881), an English lawyer and author who wrote several works on legal history and jurisprudence.
3. Nathaniel Birt (1762-1841), an English Nonconformist minister and author of several religious works.
4. John Birt (1744-1822), an English botanist and co-founder of the Linnean Society of London in 1788.
5. Theodora Birt (1874-1962), a British painter and illustrator known for her portraits and landscape paintings.
The Birt surname has a rich history rooted in medieval England, with various instances of the name appearing in historical records and documents from different regions. While its origins can be traced back to Old English, the name has evolved over the centuries and has been associated with notable individuals in various fields.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Birt
Among Census respondents with the surname Birt, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Black (20.0%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Birt 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 Birt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.1% · 1,762
- Black or African American20.0% · 483
- Two or more races3.4% · 81
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 60
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Birt
Birt 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
#12,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,577
+101 bearers (+4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Down 467 places
2020
#12,324
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,409
-168 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.81
Rank movement Down 229 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,628 | 2,476 | 0.92 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,095 | 2,577 | 0.87 | +101 bearers (+4.1%) | Down 467 places |
| 2020 | #12,324 | 2,409 | 0.81 | -168 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 229 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 Birt 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 | #12,095 | #12,324 | -1.9% |
| Count | 2,577 | 2,409 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.87 | 0.81 | -7.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Birt bearers went from 2,577 to 2,409 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 229 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,095 to #12,324.
FAQ
Birt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Birt?
Name Census estimates that about 2,762 living Americans carry the surname Birt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 124,096 residents.
How common is Birt?
Birt ranks #12,324 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.81 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 2,409 people with the surname Birt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,762), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.81 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.81 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 Birt.
Has Birt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Birt went from 2,577 recorded bearers to 2,409. That is a decrease of 168 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,095 to #12,324.
What does the Census say about the background of Birt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Birt, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Black (20.0%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Birt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.1% (1,762 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Birt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.1%), Black (20.0%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Birt (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 Birt mean?
Derived from the Old English word "beorht," meaning "bright," referring to someone with a cheerful or lively disposition. 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 Birt (0.81 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 have the last name Birt?
If you just want to know how many people are called Birt, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.