Find out how popular the last name Brafford is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Brafford.
Of English origin, possibly derived from "broad ford" or a broad crossing point.
Brafford, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Brafford surname is from the 2010 census data.
Brafford is the 19716th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Brafford surname appeared 1,366 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Brafford.
We can also compare 2010 data for Brafford to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.
| 2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 19716 | 19071 | 3.33% |
| Count | 1,366 | 1,320 | 3.43% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.46 | 0.49 | -6.32% |
The surname Brafford is of English origin, derived from the place name Brafford, which was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Bradeford. This name is composed of the Old English elements "brad" meaning broad and "ford" meaning a shallow river crossing.
The earliest known bearer of the surname was William de Bradeford, who was recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire in 1190. Another early record of the name is found in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296, where a John de Bradeford is mentioned.
In the 13th century, the spelling of the name evolved to Brafford, as seen in the Feet of Fines of Norfolk from 1268, which mentions a Robert de Brafford. This spelling variation likely arose due to regional dialect differences in pronunciation.
One notable bearer of the Brafford surname was Sir John Brafford, a Member of Parliament for Worcestershire in 1399, during the reign of King Richard II. Another was Thomas Brafford, who was born in 1525 and served as the Mayor of Norwich in 1577.
In the 16th century, the surname Brafford was found in various parts of England, including Yorkshire, where a Richard Brafford was born in 1547, and Oxfordshire, where a John Brafford was born in 1562.
During the English Civil War in the 17th century, a Captain William Brafford fought for the Parliamentarian forces and was present at the Battle of Naseby in 1645. He later became a prominent landowner in Gloucestershire.
Another notable figure was Sir Edward Brafford, born in 1678, who served as the Chief Justice of the King's Bench in Ireland from 1722 to 1741. He played a significant role in shaping the legal system of Ireland during his tenure.
Throughout its history, the Brafford surname has been associated with various places in England, including the villages of Brafford in Devon and Brafford in Worcestershire, which were likely named after early bearers of the surname.
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Brafford.
The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:
For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Brafford was:
| Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
|---|---|---|
| Non-Hispanic White Only | 90.48% | 1,236 |
| Non-Hispanic Black Only | 3.00% | 41 |
| Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | 0.66% | 9 |
| Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | 1.76% | 24 |
| Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | 1.61% | 22 |
| Hispanic Origin | 2.49% | 34 |
Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.
Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Brafford has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
| 2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 90.48% | 91.52% | -1.14% |
| Black | 3.00% | 2.65% | 12.39% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.66% | 0.68% | -2.99% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 1.76% | 2.20% | -22.22% |
| Two or More Races | 1.61% | 0.83% | 63.93% |
| Hispanic | 2.49% | 2.12% | 16.05% |
The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.
The history and meaning of the name Brafford was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
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