2000
#7,289
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,216
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.56
Rare Last name
Brogdon
An English habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "valley of the badger" or "valley of Brocca."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,777 Americans carry the last name Brogdon. That puts it at #7,663 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.39 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 71,751 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brogdon 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.
Bearers in the US
4.8K
1 in 71,751
Census rank
#7,663
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,166 bearers of the surname Brogdon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.39 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7663rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brogdon, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.1%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brogdon
The surname Brogdon is of English origin, deriving from the Old English words "brog" and "dun," meaning "dweller by the brook." It is believed to have originated in the medieval period, likely between the 12th and 15th centuries, in the counties of Cheshire, Derbyshire, and Lancashire in northwest England.
One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Staffordshire from 1199, which mentions a person named Richard de Brocton. This spelling variation suggests a connection to the village of Brockton, located in the parish of Eccleshall in Staffordshire.
In the 13th century, the Brogdon surname appeared in various manorial records and charters, often associated with landholdings and property transactions. For example, a William de Brogdene is mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Lancashire in 1246, indicating the family's presence in that region during that period.
The Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landholdings and properties compiled in 1086 under the order of William the Conqueror, does not contain any direct references to the Brogdon surname. However, it does mention several places with similar names, such as Broctune in Staffordshire and Brocton in Derbyshire, suggesting potential connections to the surname's origins.
Notable individuals with the Brogdon surname throughout history include:
1. Sir Thomas Brogdon (c. 1530-1589), an English landowner and Member of Parliament for Lancashire during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
2. John Brogdon (1628-1696), an English Puritan minister and author who served as the Master of Caius College, Cambridge.
3. William Brogdon (1793-1855), an English industrialist and entrepreneur who played a significant role in the development of the cotton industry in Manchester.
4. James Brogdon (1818-1892), an American businessman and politician who served as the Mayor of Savannah, Georgia, from 1869 to 1871.
5. Malcolm Brogdon (born 1992), an American professional basketball player currently playing for the Boston Celtics in the NBA.
While the Brogdon surname has its roots in England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, often through migration and colonization efforts over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brogdon
Among Census respondents with the surname Brogdon, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.1%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Brogdon 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 Brogdon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.1% · 3,085
- Black or African American15.9% · 664
- Two or more races4.5% · 189
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 157
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 39
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 32
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brogdon
Brogdon 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
#7,641
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,346
+130 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 1.47
Rank movement Down 352 places
2020
#7,663
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,166
-180 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 1.39
Rank movement Down 22 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,289 | 4,216 | 1.56 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,641 | 4,346 | 1.47 | +130 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 352 places |
| 2020 | #7,663 | 4,166 | 1.39 | -180 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 22 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 Brogdon 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 | #7,641 | #7,663 | -0.3% |
| Count | 4,346 | 4,166 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.47 | 1.39 | -5.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brogdon bearers went from 4,346 to 4,166 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 22 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,641 to #7,663.
FAQ
Brogdon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brogdon?
Name Census estimates that about 4,777 living Americans carry the surname Brogdon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 71,751 residents.
How common is Brogdon?
Brogdon ranks #7,663 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.39 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,166 people with the surname Brogdon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,777), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.39 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.39 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Brogdon.
Has Brogdon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brogdon went from 4,346 recorded bearers to 4,166. That is a decrease of 180 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,641 to #7,663.
What does the Census say about the background of Brogdon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brogdon, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.1%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Brogdon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.1% (3,085 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brogdon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (74.1%), Black (15.9%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Brogdon (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 Brogdon mean?
An English habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "valley of the badger" or "valley of Brocca." 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 Brogdon (1.39 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 last name Brogdon?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Brogdon, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.