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

Broadway, 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 Broadway surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Broadway in America

Broadway is the 5247th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Broadway surname appeared 6,647 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 Broadway.

We can also compare 2010 data for Broadway 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 Broadway

The surname Broadway originates from England and dates back to the medieval period. It is a locational name derived from various place names containing the elements "broad" and "way," referring to a wide road or path.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Bradewei" in reference to a settlement in Gloucestershire. This suggests that the name was already well-established by the time of the Norman Conquest.

In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various forms such as "de Bradeweye" and "atte Brodeweye," reflecting the common practice of using prepositions like "de" or "atte" to indicate a person's place of origin.

One notable early bearer of the surname was John Broadway, a member of the English Parliament who represented Gloucestershire in 1397 and 1401.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name began to take on its modern spelling of "Broadway." Records from this period include individuals like Robert Broadway, a merchant from London born in 1570, and Thomas Broadway, a clergyman and author from Worcestershire who lived from 1593 to 1668.

In the 18th century, the name gained further prominence with figures such as George Broadway (1711-1783), a successful London-based bookseller and publisher, and John Broadway (1744-1815), an English architect responsible for designing several notable buildings in Bristol.

Moving into the 19th century, one of the most famous bearers of the surname was William Broadway (1818-1898), a renowned English composer and organist who served as the organist of Westminster Abbey for over 40 years.

Throughout history, the Broadway surname has been associated with various occupations and professions, reflecting the diverse backgrounds of its bearers. From merchants and clergymen to architects and musicians, the name has left its mark across various aspects of English society.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Broadway

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!