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

Burgess, 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 Burgess surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Burgess in America

Burgess is the 444th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Burgess surname appeared 73,931 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 25 people would have the surname Burgess.

We can also compare 2010 data for Burgess 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 Burgess

The surname Burgess originated in England during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old French word "burgeis" which means a freeman or citizen of a borough or town. The term "borough" itself comes from the Anglo-Saxon "burh" meaning a fortified town or settlement.

Burgess was an occupational surname given to those who held rights as freemen or burgesses in a medieval borough or town. These individuals were often merchants, tradesmen or craftsmen who enjoyed certain privileges and liberties within the borough's jurisdiction.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Burgess can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landholdings and population in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears in various spellings such as "Burgeis" and "Burgensis" throughout the document.

In the 13th century, the name was found in various records and legal documents, such as the Curia Regis Rolls and the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire. For example, a certain William Burgess was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of 1166 in relation to a land transaction in Yorkshire.

The surname Burgess also has connections to various place names in England, such as Burgess Hill in West Sussex and Burgess Park in London. These places likely derived their names from individuals bearing the surname Burgess who were associated with those locations.

Notable individuals with the surname Burgess throughout history include:

1. Roger Burgess (c. 1325-1392), an English prelate who served as Bishop of Salisbury from 1389 until his death.
2. Anthony Burgess (1917-1993), an English novelist and critic best known for his novel "A Clockwork Orange".
3. Guy Burgess (1911-1963), a British diplomat and Soviet spy who defected to the Soviet Union in 1951, along with several other members of the Cambridge Five spy ring.
4. Thomas Burgess (1784-1837), an English philosopher and bishop who served as Bishop of Salisbury from 1825 until his death.
5. Gelett Burgess (1866-1951), an American author, artist and humorist who is best known for coining the word "blurb" in 1907.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Burgess

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

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

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

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