2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Byroad
A surname likely denoting one who lived or worked near a minor rural road.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 118 Americans carry the last name Byroad. That puts it at #154,182 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,904,698 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Byroad 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
118
1 in 2,904,698
Census rank
#154,182
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
103
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 103 bearers of the surname Byroad in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154182nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Byroad, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Byroad
The surname "BYROAD" is thought to have originated in England during the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "bi" meaning "by" and "rad" meaning "road" or "path". The name likely referred to someone who lived or worked near a particular road or byroad.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Lay Subsidy Rolls for Yorkshire in 1301, which lists a Robert Bierode. This early spelling variation suggests the name may have initially been pronounced with a long "e" sound before evolving into its modern form.
In the 15th century, the name appears in various records from the county of Suffolk. A William Byrode is mentioned in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Halesworth in 1428. The nearby village of Byroad Green in Suffolk likely takes its name from this surname, though the exact connection is unclear.
During the 16th century, the name began to spread across other parts of England. In 1567, a Thomas Byroad is recorded as living in the parish of St. Giles, Cripplegate in London. Around this time, the spelling of the name seems to have stabilized to its current form.
Notable individuals with the surname Byroad include:
1. Robert Byroad (c. 1510 - 1585), a mercer and alderman in the City of London during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
2. Alice Byroad (c. 1580 - 1647), one of the first English women to publish a book of poetry, titled "The Lyrical Lamentations of a Gentlewoman" in 1615.
3. John Byroad (1632 - 1703), a wealthy landowner and Member of Parliament for the borough of Winchelsea in the late 17th century.
4. Sarah Byroad (1725 - 1792), an influential Quaker preacher and activist who campaigned against slavery and advocated for women's rights.
5. Edward Byroad (1810 - 1877), a renowned architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Royal Albert Hall.
While not an exceptionally common surname, the name Byroad has endured for centuries and can be traced back to its humble origins referring to those living near a byroad or minor path in medieval England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Byroad
Among Census respondents with the surname Byroad, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Byroad 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 Byroad surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.2% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 3
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Byroad
Byroad appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,182
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
+3 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 6,793 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,182 | 103 | 0.03 | +3 bearers (+3.0%) | Up 6,793 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 Byroad 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 | #160,975 | #154,182 | 4.2% |
| Count | 100 | 103 | 3.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 14.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Byroad bearers went from 100 to 103 (+3.0% change). The surname moved up 6,793 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #154,182.
FAQ
Byroad surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Byroad?
Name Census estimates that about 118 living Americans carry the surname Byroad. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,904,698 residents.
How common is Byroad?
Byroad ranks #154,182 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 103 people with the surname Byroad. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (118), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Byroad.
Has Byroad become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Byroad went from 100 recorded bearers to 103. That is an increase of 3 (+3.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #154,182.
What does the Census say about the background of Byroad?
Among Census respondents with the surname Byroad, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Byroad in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Byroad appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.2%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Byroad (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 Byroad mean?
A surname likely denoting one who lived or worked near a minor rural road. 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 Byroad (0.03 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 Byroad?
You can see how many people have the surname Byroad on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.