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

Carpenter, 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 Carpenter surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Carpenter in America

Carpenter is the 231st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Carpenter surname appeared 129,898 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 44 people would have the surname Carpenter.

We can also compare 2010 data for Carpenter 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 Carpenter

The surname Carpenter is an occupational name that originated in England and France during the medieval period. It derives from the Old French word "carpentier" and the Old English "carpentere," both of which mean "maker of carts or wagons." These words ultimately trace their roots back to the Latin word "carpentarius," which means "carriage-maker" or "wagon-maker."

In England, the name Carpenter can be traced back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Carpentarius" and "le Carpenter." This indicates that the name was already in use by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066. The name was particularly common in areas with a strong woodworking or construction industry, such as Kent, Sussex, and Gloucestershire.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Carpenter is found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1195, where a man named Radulfus Carpenter is mentioned. Another early example is found in the Curia Regis Rolls of Buckinghamshire in 1214, which mentions a Hugo le Carpenter.

In France, the name Charpentier (the French equivalent of Carpenter) can be traced back to the 12th century. It was particularly prevalent in the regions of Normandy, Brittany, and Burgundy, where the woodworking and construction trades were significant.

Notable individuals with the surname Carpenter throughout history include:

1. John Carpenter (c. 1370 - 1441), an English composer and music theorist who served as the Master of the Choristers at the Abbey Church of St. Stephen in Westminster.

2. Lant Carpenter (1572 - 1628), an English preacher and clergyman who served as the Vicar of Northill in Bedfordshire.

3. Ezra Carpenter (1819 - 1905), an American inventor and pioneer in the field of underwater acoustics, known for his work on the bathysphere.

4. William Benjamin Carpenter (1813 - 1885), an English naturalist, physician, and invertebrate zoologist who made significant contributions to the study of marine biology.

5. Stephen Cullen Carpenter (1820 - 1892), an American jurist and politician who served as the Governor of Wisconsin from 1866 to 1870.

While the name Carpenter has its roots in the occupational trades of medieval times, it has since become a widespread surname found throughout the English-speaking world and beyond.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Carpenter

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

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

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

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