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

Cavendish, 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 Cavendish surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cavendish in America

Cavendish is the 48530th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cavendish surname appeared 435 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Cavendish.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cavendish 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 Cavendish

The surname Cavendish originated in England during the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "cadfand" which means "at the head" and "isic" meaning a small stream or waterway. The name refers to a homestead situated at the source or head of a stream.

The earliest known record of the Cavendish name dates back to the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire in 1199, where it was spelled as "Cavendishe." This suggests that the family's ancestral lands were located in or near the village of Cavendish in Suffolk.

In the 13th century, the Cavendish family acquired estates in the counties of Suffolk and Derbyshire. They were prominent landowners and played influential roles in local affairs. The name can be found in various historical documents from this period, including the Hundred Rolls of 1273.

One of the earliest notable figures with the Cavendish surname was Sir John Cavendish (c.1346-1381), who served as Chief Justice of the King's Bench during the reign of Edward III. He was involved in the trial and condemnation of John Wycliffe, the famous religious reformer.

In the 15th century, the Cavendish family gained further prominence when William Cavendish (c.1505-1557) became a prominent courtier and supporter of Cardinal Thomas Wolsey. His grandson, also named William Cavendish (1552-1625), was created the first Earl of Devonshire in 1618 by King James I.

Another significant figure was Thomas Cavendish (1555-1592), an English navigator and explorer who circumnavigated the globe between 1586 and 1588. He was the third person to accomplish this feat after Ferdinand Magellan and Sir Francis Drake.

During the English Civil War, the Cavendish family remained loyal to the Royalist cause. William Cavendish (1592-1676), the 3rd Earl of Devonshire, was a prominent Royalist commander and fought in several battles against the Parliamentarians.

The Cavendish surname has also been associated with scientific achievements. Henry Cavendish (1731-1810) was a renowned British natural philosopher who made important contributions to the study of electricity, heat, and gravity. He is credited with the discovery of hydrogen and the calculation of the gravitational constant known as the Cavendish experiment.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cavendish

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

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

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

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