2000
#8,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,379
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.25
Rare Last name
Buzzard
An English surname derived from the Old French word "buisart," referring to a type of hawk or bird of prey.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,566 Americans carry the last name Buzzard. That puts it at #9,905 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 96,117 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buzzard 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 Buzzard with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.6K
1 in 96,117
Census rank
#9,905
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,110 bearers of the surname Buzzard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9905th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buzzard, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buzzard
The surname "Buzzard" is believed to have originated in England, specifically in the counties of Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire, sometime around the 13th century. It is derived from the Old English word "buser" or "buzer," which referred to a type of hawk or falcon. This suggests that the name may have originally been a nickname for someone who worked with or had a particular affinity for these birds.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which mentions a Robert Buser residing in Buckinghamshire. The spelling "Buzzard" first appeared in the 14th century, as evidenced by records from the nearby county of Northamptonshire, where a John Buzzard was documented in 1379.
The name also has connections to various place names in England, such as Buzzard's Bush in Oxfordshire and Buzzard's Valley in Gloucestershire. These locations likely derived their names from the presence of the bird of prey or from individuals with the surname "Buzzard" who resided there.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname "Buzzard." One of the earliest was Sir John Buzzard, who served as a member of Parliament for Buckinghamshire in the late 14th century. Another notable figure was Thomas Buzzard, a prominent English physician who lived from 1759 to 1835 and made significant contributions to the field of medicine.
In the 18th century, the name appeared in the records of the East India Company, with a Captain William Buzzard serving as a commander of one of their ships. The 19th century saw the birth of Samuel Buzzard, an English artist known for his landscape paintings, who lived from 1823 to 1898.
One of the most influential individuals with the surname "Buzzard" was Sir Edward Buzzard, a British physician and neurologist born in 1871. He made significant contributions to the study of neurology and served as the President of the Royal College of Physicians from 1935 to 1941.
While the surname "Buzzard" may have originated as a nickname for those associated with hawks or falcons, it has since become a well-established surname with a rich history spanning several centuries and numerous notable bearers across various fields.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buzzard
Among Census respondents with the surname Buzzard, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Buzzard 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 Buzzard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.7% · 2,666
- Two or more races5.2% · 162
- American Indian and Alaska Native4.8% · 149
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 91
- Black or African American0.7% · 21
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buzzard
Buzzard 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
#9,845
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,287
-92 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 1.11
Rank movement Down 938 places
2020
#9,905
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,110
-177 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Down 60 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,907 | 3,379 | 1.25 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,845 | 3,287 | 1.11 | -92 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 938 places |
| 2020 | #9,905 | 3,110 | 1.04 | -177 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 60 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 Buzzard 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 | #9,845 | #9,905 | -0.6% |
| Count | 3,287 | 3,110 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.11 | 1.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buzzard bearers went from 3,287 to 3,110 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 60 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,845 to #9,905.
FAQ
Buzzard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buzzard?
Name Census estimates that about 3,566 living Americans carry the surname Buzzard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 96,117 residents.
How common is Buzzard?
Buzzard ranks #9,905 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.04 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 3,110 people with the surname Buzzard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,566), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.04 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 Buzzard.
Has Buzzard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buzzard went from 3,287 recorded bearers to 3,110. That is a decrease of 177 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,845 to #9,905.
What does the Census say about the background of Buzzard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buzzard, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (4.8%). 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 Buzzard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.7% (2,666 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buzzard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.7%), Two or More Races (5.2%), American Indian/Alaska Native (4.8%). 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 Buzzard (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 Buzzard mean?
An English surname derived from the Old French word "buisart," referring to a type of hawk or bird of prey. 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 Buzzard (1.04 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 many people have the surname Buzzard?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.