2000
#6,288
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,991
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.85
Rare Last name
Catlett
Derived from a place name meaning "cat hole" in Old English, referring to a den or lair of wildcats.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,577 Americans carry the last name Catlett. That puts it at #6,674 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.63 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 61,459 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Catlett 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
5.6K
1 in 61,459
Census rank
#6,674
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,863 bearers of the surname Catlett in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.63 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6674th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Catlett, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Catlett
The surname Catlett is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "cat" and "hlithe," which together mean "slope where wild cats live." This suggests that the name may have been first adopted by someone who lived near such a location.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, which mention a Richard de Catlith. The spelling variations of the name in its early days included Catlithe, Catlith, and Catelegh.
The Catlett surname is also closely tied to several place names in England, such as Catley in Northamptonshire and Catlow in Lancashire. These place names share a similar etymology to the surname, further reinforcing the connection between the name and geographical features associated with wildcats.
In the Hundred Rolls of 1273, a document recording landowners and their holdings, there is a reference to a William de Catelegh, who held lands in Derbyshire. This is one of the earliest recorded instances of the name in its more modern spelling.
Notable individuals throughout history who bore the surname Catlett include:
1. Sir William Catlett (c. 1460-1515), a member of the English gentry and landowner in Kent.
2. John Catlett (c. 1592-1670), an English Puritan minister who emigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1630s.
3. Sackville Catlett (1677-1743), a prominent planter and landowner in Virginia, whose estate was later known as Catlett's Farm.
4. Thomas Catlett (1728-1787), a Virginia planter and military officer who served in the French and Indian War.
5. Robert Catlett (1788-1861), a U.S. Congressman from Virginia who served in the House of Representatives from 1833 to 1837.
While the surname Catlett has its roots in England and can be traced back to the medieval period, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through English colonization and migration.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Catlett
Among Census respondents with the surname Catlett, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Catlett 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 Catlett surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.8% · 3,928
- Black or African American11.2% · 543
- Two or more races4.8% · 234
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 99
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 30
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 29
Timeline
Historical Census data for Catlett
Catlett 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
#6,458
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,258
+267 bearers (+5.3%)
Per 100,000 1.78
Rank movement Down 170 places
2020
#6,674
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,863
-395 bearers (-7.5%)
Per 100,000 1.63
Rank movement Down 216 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,288 | 4,991 | 1.85 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,458 | 5,258 | 1.78 | +267 bearers (+5.3%) | Down 170 places |
| 2020 | #6,674 | 4,863 | 1.63 | -395 bearers (-7.5%) | Down 216 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 Catlett 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 | #6,458 | #6,674 | -3.3% |
| Count | 5,258 | 4,863 | -7.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.78 | 1.63 | -8.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Catlett bearers went from 5,258 to 4,863 (-7.5% change). The surname moved down 216 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,458 to #6,674.
FAQ
Catlett surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Catlett?
Name Census estimates that about 5,577 living Americans carry the surname Catlett. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 61,459 residents.
How common is Catlett?
Catlett ranks #6,674 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.63 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,863 people with the surname Catlett. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,577), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.63 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.63 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Catlett.
Has Catlett become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Catlett went from 5,258 recorded bearers to 4,863. That is a decrease of 395 (-7.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,458 to #6,674.
What does the Census say about the background of Catlett?
Among Census respondents with the surname Catlett, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Two or More Races (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 Catlett in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.8% (3,928 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Catlett appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.8%), Black (11.2%), Two or More Races (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 Catlett (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 Catlett mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "cat hole" in Old English, referring to a den or lair of wildcats. 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 Catlett (1.63 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 last name Catlett?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Catlett? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.