2000
#6,596
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,739
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.76
Rare Last name
Burbank
One who resided near or worked on a riverbank or hillside.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,419 Americans carry the last name Burbank. That puts it at #6,852 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.58 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 63,250 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Burbank 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
5.4K
1 in 63,250
Census rank
#6,852
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,726 bearers of the surname Burbank in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.58 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6852nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Burbank, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (8.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Burbank
The surname Burbank is of English origin and dates back to the medieval period. It is a locational name derived from the place name Burbank, which means "a ridge by a fortified dwelling." The earliest recorded instances of this surname can be traced back to Yorkshire and Lancashire in northern England.
The name Burbank is composed of two Old English elements: "burg" meaning a fortified dwelling or a manor, and "banc" referring to a ridge or a slope. This suggests that the original bearers of this name likely resided near or on a ridge close to a fortified manor or settlement.
In the famous Domesday Book of 1086, a survey of landholdings in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, there are several references to places with similar names, such as Burbache and Burbeck, which are believed to be related to the modern surname Burbank.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Burbank was John de Burbank, who is mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1208. Another early bearer of this name was William de Burbank, who is listed in the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1273.
Notable individuals with the surname Burbank throughout history include:
1. Luther Burbank (1849-1926), an American botanist and horticulturist renowned for his work in plant breeding and introducing several new varieties of fruits and vegetables.
2. Richard Burbank (c. 1540-1620), an English composer and organist who served as the organist at Chester Cathedral in the late 16th century.
3. Caleb Burbank (1719-1783), an American soldier and officer who fought in the French and Indian War and the American Revolutionary War.
4. Elbridge Gerry Burbank (1834-1916), an American businessman and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts.
5. John Burbank (1789-1858), a British sailor and explorer who was part of several voyages to the Pacific Northwest and helped survey the Columbia River in the early 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Burbank
Among Census respondents with the surname Burbank, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (8.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Burbank 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 Burbank surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.2% · 3,791
- American Indian and Alaska Native8.6% · 405
- Two or more races3.7% · 173
- Black or African American3.6% · 170
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 146
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 41
Timeline
Historical Census data for Burbank
Burbank 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
#6,480
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,240
+501 bearers (+10.6%)
Per 100,000 1.78
Rank movement Up 116 places
2020
#6,852
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,726
-514 bearers (-9.8%)
Per 100,000 1.58
Rank movement Down 372 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,596 | 4,739 | 1.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,480 | 5,240 | 1.78 | +501 bearers (+10.6%) | Up 116 places |
| 2020 | #6,852 | 4,726 | 1.58 | -514 bearers (-9.8%) | Down 372 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 Burbank 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 | #6,480 | #6,852 | -5.7% |
| Count | 5,240 | 4,726 | -9.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.78 | 1.58 | -11.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Burbank bearers went from 5,240 to 4,726 (-9.8% change). The surname moved down 372 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,480 to #6,852.
FAQ
Burbank surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Burbank?
Name Census estimates that about 5,419 living Americans carry the surname Burbank. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 63,250 residents.
How common is Burbank?
Burbank ranks #6,852 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.58 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 4,726 people with the surname Burbank. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,419), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.58 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.58 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 Burbank.
Has Burbank become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Burbank went from 5,240 recorded bearers to 4,726. That is a decrease of 514 (-9.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,480 to #6,852.
What does the Census say about the background of Burbank?
Among Census respondents with the surname Burbank, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (8.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Burbank in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.2% (3,791 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Burbank appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.2%), American Indian/Alaska Native (8.6%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Burbank (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 Burbank mean?
One who resided near or worked on a riverbank or hillside. 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 Burbank (1.58 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 Burbank?
If you just want to know how common the surname Burbank is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.