2000
#6,559
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,765
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.77
Rare Last name
Brockway
An English locational surname derived from any of the various places named Brockway, meaning "brook path."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,266 Americans carry the last name Brockway. That puts it at #7,044 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.54 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 65,088 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brockway 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Brockway with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.3K
1 in 65,088
Census rank
#7,044
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,592 bearers of the surname Brockway in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.54 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7044th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brockway, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brockway
The surname Brockway is of English origin and dates back to the 12th century. It is a locational name, derived from the place name Brockway, a village in Somerset, England. The name itself is thought to come from the Old English words "broc" meaning brook or stream, and "weg" meaning way or path, referring to a path or road running alongside a brook.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275, where a William de Brocwey is mentioned. The Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1279 also make mention of a Richard de Brocweye.
In the 16th century, the name appeared in various records with different spellings, such as Brokway, Brokewaye, and Brokewey. A notable example is John Brockway, born in 1550 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, who was a prominent merchant and landowner.
Another significant figure was Sir Thomas Brockway (1572-1638), a member of parliament for Westbury in Wiltshire during the reign of King James I. He was known for his support of the English colonization of North America and was a shareholder in the Massachusetts Bay Company.
During the English Civil War, a Captain Robert Brockway (1610-1677) fought for the Parliamentarian forces and was commended for his bravery at the Battle of Naseby in 1645.
In the 18th century, the name was found in various parts of England, including Yorkshire and Derbyshire. One notable individual was Samuel Brockway (1733-1815), a renowned clockmaker from Derby whose clocks are still highly prized by collectors today.
The Brockway surname also has a long history in the United States, with early immigrants arriving from England in the 17th and 18th centuries. One of the first recorded instances was Rev. Thomas Brockway (1624-1688), who emigrated to Massachusetts in 1636 and became a prominent Puritan minister.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brockway
Among Census respondents with the surname Brockway, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Brockway 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 Brockway surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.9% · 4,176
- Two or more races4.3% · 198
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 128
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 45
- Black or African American0.5% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 20
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brockway
Brockway 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
#6,947
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,828
+63 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 1.64
Rank movement Down 388 places
2020
#7,044
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,592
-236 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.54
Rank movement Down 97 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,559 | 4,765 | 1.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,947 | 4,828 | 1.64 | +63 bearers (+1.3%) | Down 388 places |
| 2020 | #7,044 | 4,592 | 1.54 | -236 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 97 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 Brockway 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 | #6,947 | #7,044 | -1.4% |
| Count | 4,828 | 4,592 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.64 | 1.54 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brockway bearers went from 4,828 to 4,592 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 97 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,947 to #7,044.
FAQ
Brockway surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brockway?
Name Census estimates that about 5,266 living Americans carry the surname Brockway. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 65,088 residents.
How common is Brockway?
Brockway ranks #7,044 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.54 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,592 people with the surname Brockway. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,266), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.54 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.54 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Brockway.
Has Brockway become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brockway went from 4,828 recorded bearers to 4,592. That is a decrease of 236 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,947 to #7,044.
What does the Census say about the background of Brockway?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brockway, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Brockway in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.9% (4,176 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brockway appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.9%), Two or More Races (4.3%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Brockway (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 Brockway mean?
An English locational surname derived from any of the various places named Brockway, meaning "brook path." 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 Brockway (1.54 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 have the surname Brockway?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.