2000
#118,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 135
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Burnight
A locational surname possibly related to Burnet in Scotland, thought to derive from "burn" meaning a small stream.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Burnight. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Burnight 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Burnight in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Burnight, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Burnight
The surname BURNIGHT originates from England, and can be traced back to the early 13th century. It is believed to have derived from a combination of two Old English words, "burna" meaning a stream or brook, and "naht" meaning night or darkness. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near a stream or brook that was particularly dark or shaded.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire, a census-like record from 1273, where a person named Reynold de Burneyt is mentioned. The spelling variations during this time included Burnett, Burnet, and Burneit.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield, Yorkshire, with references to individuals named Adam Burnet and John Burnet. This suggests that the name had spread to different regions of England by this time.
The BURNIGHT surname is also associated with some notable figures throughout history. One such individual was Sir John Burnet (1684-1773), a Scottish writer and philosopher who authored the influential work "The Sacred Theory of the Earth." Another was Gilbert Burnet (1643-1715), a Scottish historian and Bishop of Salisbury, who wrote the influential "History of the Reformation of the Church of England."
In the realm of literature, the name is associated with Frances Burney (1752-1840), an English novelist and playwright who is best known for her novel "Evelina." Her sister, Sarah Burney (1770-1844), was also a novelist and playwright.
Another notable figure with the BURNIGHT surname was Sir Alexander Burnes (1805-1841), a Scottish explorer and diplomat who played a significant role in the British exploration of Afghanistan and the region surrounding it.
Throughout its history, the BURNIGHT surname has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Burnett's Green in Suffolk, and Burnett's Hill in Northumberland. These place names may have originated from individuals bearing the surname, or from the geographic features that inspired the surname in the first place.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Burnight
Among Census respondents with the surname Burnight, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Burnight 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 Burnight surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.7% · 108
- Black or African American1.8% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Burnight
Burnight 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-20 bearers (-14.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 25,187 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,354 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #118,954 | 135 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | -20 bearers (-14.8%) | Down 25,187 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 2,354 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 Burnight 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 | #144,141 | #146,495 | -1.6% |
| Count | 115 | 114 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Burnight bearers went from 115 to 114 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 2,354 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #146,495.
FAQ
Burnight surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Burnight?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Burnight. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Burnight?
Burnight ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 114 people with the surname Burnight. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Burnight.
Has Burnight become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Burnight went from 115 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Burnight?
Among Census respondents with the surname Burnight, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Burnight in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.7% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Burnight appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.7%), Black (1.8%), Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Burnight (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 Burnight mean?
A locational surname possibly related to Burnet in Scotland, thought to derive from "burn" meaning a small stream. 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 Burnight (0.04 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 common is the surname Burnight?
Want to know how common the surname Burnight is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.