Find out how popular the last name Brandon is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Brandon.

Brandon, 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 Brandon surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Brandon in America

Brandon is the 1342nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Brandon surname appeared 26,284 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 9 people would have the surname Brandon.

We can also compare 2010 data for Brandon 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.

The history of the last name Brandon

The surname Brandon originated in England in the medieval period. It derives from the Old English word "brun" meaning brown or dark complexioned, and the suffix "-dun" meaning hill. The name Brandon therefore refers to a person who lived by a brown or dark-colored hill.

The earliest known record of the Brandon surname dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Brendon" and "Brantone". This suggests the name was already established in parts of England by the late 11th century.

In the 12th century, records show variations like "Braundone" and "Braundon". These likely refer to places like Brandon in Suffolk, Brandon in Warwickshire, and other locations called Brandon across England. Many people adopted the place name as their surname.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Brandon name was Sir William Brandon (c.1425-1491), a soldier and courtier during the Wars of the Roses. He fought for the House of York and later served under Henry VII.

Another notable figure was Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk (c.1484-1545). He was a close friend of Henry VIII and married his sister Mary Tudor in 1515 after the death of her first husband Louis XII of France.

In the arts, Raphael Brandon (1909-1983) was an English painter and etcher known for his landscapes and portraits. He studied at the Slade School of Art in London.

Geoffrey Brandon (1909-1998) was a 20th century English historian and archaeologist specializing in ancient religions and symbolism. He authored many books on ancient cultures.

Samuel Musgrave Brandon (1907-1971) was an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Hampshire County Cricket Club in the 1930s as a right-handed batsman.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Brandon

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Brandon.

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:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Brandon was:

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 Brandon has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

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 Brandon was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Brandon, please contact us.

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