2000
#14,444
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,896
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.70
Rare Last name
Boatner
An occupational surname for a boat builder or boatman.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,195 Americans carry the last name Boatner. That puts it at #14,862 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.64 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 156,152 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Boatner 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.
Bearers in the US
2.2K
1 in 156,152
Census rank
#14,862
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,914 bearers of the surname Boatner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.64 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14862nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Boatner, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.6%. The next largest groups are Black (37.3%) and Hispanic (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Boatner
The surname Boatner is of English origin, tracing its roots back to the early medieval period. It is a locational name derived from a place called Boatner's Green, a small hamlet located near the town of Lichfield in Staffordshire. The name likely originated from the Old English words "bāt" meaning "boat" and "ær" meaning "a dweller", suggesting that the name may have referred to someone who lived near a boat landing or ferry crossing.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls for Staffordshire in 1327, where a certain William de Botenere is listed as a taxpayer. The spelling variations during that time included Botenere, Botnour, and Botener, reflecting the evolution of the name over time.
In the 16th century, the Boatner family had established itself in various parts of England, with records showing individuals bearing the name in counties like Warwickshire, Leicestershire, and Gloucestershire. One notable figure from this period was John Boatner, a wealthy merchant who lived in Stratford-upon-Avon during the late 16th century and was a contemporary of William Shakespeare.
As the Boatner family spread across England, the name took on various spellings, including Boatner, Boatener, and Boatman. In the 17th century, a branch of the family settled in the county of Shropshire, where they became prominent landowners and farmers. One member of this branch, Thomas Boatner (1620-1685), was a respected local magistrate and served as a member of the Shropshire County Council.
In the 18th century, the Boatners continued to establish themselves in various parts of England, with some members venturing into the colonies of North America. One such individual was Samuel Boatner (1745-1824), who emigrated from Gloucestershire to Virginia in the late 1760s and fought in the American Revolutionary War.
As the centuries passed, the Boatner name continued to be associated with notable figures in various fields. In the 19th century, Edward Boatner (1807-1891) was a renowned architect who designed several important buildings in London, including the Royal Albert Hall. Another prominent individual was Mary Boatner (1856-1935), a pioneering educator who founded one of the first schools for girls in the city of Bristol.
Throughout its long history, the surname Boatner has been carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions, including soldiers, artists, writers, and businessmen. While its origins lie in the small hamlet of Boatner's Green in Staffordshire, the name has traveled far and wide, leaving an indelible mark on the history and culture of England and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Boatner
Among Census respondents with the surname Boatner, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.6%. The next largest groups are Black (37.3%) and Hispanic (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Boatner 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 Boatner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White53.6% · 1,026
- Black or African American37.3% · 713
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 87
- Two or more races3.3% · 63
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 16
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Boatner
Boatner 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
#13,903
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,172
+276 bearers (+14.6%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Up 541 places
2020
#14,862
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,914
-258 bearers (-11.9%)
Per 100,000 0.64
Rank movement Down 959 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,444 | 1,896 | 0.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,903 | 2,172 | 0.74 | +276 bearers (+14.6%) | Up 541 places |
| 2020 | #14,862 | 1,914 | 0.64 | -258 bearers (-11.9%) | Down 959 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 Boatner 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 | #13,903 | #14,862 | -6.9% |
| Count | 2,172 | 1,914 | -11.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.64 | -13.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Boatner bearers went from 2,172 to 1,914 (-11.9% change). The surname moved down 959 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,903 to #14,862.
FAQ
Boatner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Boatner?
Name Census estimates that about 2,195 living Americans carry the surname Boatner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 156,152 residents.
How common is Boatner?
Boatner ranks #14,862 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.64 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 1,914 people with the surname Boatner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,195), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.64 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.64 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 Boatner.
Has Boatner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Boatner went from 2,172 recorded bearers to 1,914. That is a decrease of 258 (-11.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,903 to #14,862.
What does the Census say about the background of Boatner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Boatner, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.6%. The next largest groups are Black (37.3%) 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 Boatner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 53.6% (1,026 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Boatner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (53.6%), Black (37.3%), 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 Boatner (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 Boatner mean?
An occupational surname for a boat builder or boatman. 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 Boatner (0.64 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 are called Boatner?
If you just want to know how many people are called Boatner, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.