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

Bristow, 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 Bristow surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bristow in America

Bristow is the 4819th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bristow surname appeared 7,323 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Bristow.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bristow 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 Bristow

The surname Bristow originated in England, dating back to the Anglo-Saxon period before the Norman Conquest of 1066. It is a locational name derived from the Old English words "bri" meaning "bridge" and "stow" meaning "place" or "town". Thus, Bristow refers to a place near a bridge or a settlement located by a bridge.

Bristow is believed to have emerged as a surname in the southwestern counties of England, particularly in Somerset and Devon. The earliest known record of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Bristou" in reference to the town of Bristol.

One of the earliest documented individuals with the surname Bristow was Richard de Bristou, who lived in Somerset in the 13th century. Another early bearer of the name was William Bristow, a member of the Parliament of England in the late 14th century.

The spelling of the surname has varied over time, with variations such as Bristowe, Bristough, and Bristo appearing in historical records. These variations often reflected local dialects and pronunciation patterns.

Notable individuals with the surname Bristow include Sir Robert Bristow (1576-1640), an English politician and Member of Parliament during the reign of King Charles I. Another prominent figure was Henry William Bristow (1817-1889), an English geologist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of fossilized plants.

In the United States, one of the earliest recorded individuals with the Bristow surname was Robert Bristow, who arrived in Virginia in 1635. Benjamin Bristow (1832-1896) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 28th United States Secretary of the Treasury under President Ulysses S. Grant.

Other notable Bristows throughout history include Benjamin Helm Bristow (1832-1896), an American lawyer and politician; William Bristow (1893-1972), a British actor; and Arthur Bristow (1886-1971), a British aeronautical engineer and co-founder of the Bristow Helicopter Company.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bristow

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

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

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

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