2000
#7,758
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,949
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.46
Rare Last name
Bixby
A topographic surname referring to someone living by an enclosure or settlement, from Old English "bī" and "cot."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,454 Americans carry the last name Bixby. That puts it at #8,158 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.30 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 76,954 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bixby 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 Bixby with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.5K
1 in 76,954
Census rank
#8,158
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,884 bearers of the surname Bixby in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.30 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8158th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bixby, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bixby
The surname Bixby is of English origin, and it is believed to have originated in the county of Oxfordshire, England, during the medieval period. Bixby is thought to be a locational name derived from the village of Byxley, which was recorded as "Bixlege" in the Domesday Book of 1086.
The name Bixby is believed to have evolved from the Old English words "bix" and "leah," which together mean "a clearing in the box trees." This suggests that the original settlement was located in an area surrounded by box trees, a type of evergreen shrub or small tree native to parts of England.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Bixby can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Oxfordshire, dated 1195, where a person named Walter de Bixlege is mentioned. This suggests that the name had already been established in the region by the late 12th century.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as Bixley, Byxley, and Byxlie, reflecting the different spellings and pronunciations that were common during that period.
A notable individual with the surname Bixby was Sir Thomas Bixby (c. 1535-1614), an English landowner and Member of Parliament for Taunton in 1597 and 1604. Another notable figure was Benjamin Bixby (1763-1825), an American soldier who fought in the Revolutionary War and later became a prominent merchant in New Hampshire.
Other noteworthy individuals with the surname Bixby include Joseph Bixby (1784-1864), a pioneer settler in Oregon and one of the founders of the town of Bixby, Oregon; Maynard Bixby (1853-1935), an American architect and designer known for his work in San Francisco; and Walter Bixby (1857-1943), an American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the Long Beach Community Hospital in California.
The name Bixby has also been associated with various place names in England and the United States, such as Bixby, Oklahoma, a town named after the Bixby family who settled there in the late 19th century, and Bixby Creek Bridge, a historic concrete arch bridge located on the Big Sur coast of California.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bixby
Among Census respondents with the surname Bixby, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Bixby 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 Bixby surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.2% · 3,541
- Two or more races3.6% · 140
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 99
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 51
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 27
- Black or African American0.7% · 26
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bixby
Bixby 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
#8,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,086
+137 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 1.39
Rank movement Down 356 places
2020
#8,158
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,884
-202 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.30
Rank movement Down 44 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,758 | 3,949 | 1.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,114 | 4,086 | 1.39 | +137 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 356 places |
| 2020 | #8,158 | 3,884 | 1.30 | -202 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 44 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 Bixby 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 | #8,114 | #8,158 | -0.5% |
| Count | 4,086 | 3,884 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.39 | 1.30 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bixby bearers went from 4,086 to 3,884 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 44 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,114 to #8,158.
FAQ
Bixby surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bixby?
Name Census estimates that about 4,454 living Americans carry the surname Bixby. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 76,954 residents.
How common is Bixby?
Bixby ranks #8,158 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.30 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 3,884 people with the surname Bixby. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,454), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.3 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.30 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 Bixby.
Has Bixby become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bixby went from 4,086 recorded bearers to 3,884. That is a decrease of 202 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,114 to #8,158.
What does the Census say about the background of Bixby?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bixby, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Bixby in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.2% (3,541 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bixby appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.2%), Two or More Races (3.6%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Bixby (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 Bixby mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone living by an enclosure or settlement, from Old English "bī" and "cot." 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 Bixby (1.30 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 Bixby?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.