2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Chaffinch
A habitational surname derived from a place name referring to a finch's nest.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 112 Americans carry the last name Chaffinch. That puts it at #156,269 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,060,307 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Chaffinch 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
112
1 in 3,060,307
Census rank
#156,269
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
98
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 98 bearers of the surname Chaffinch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156269th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Chaffinch, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (1.0%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Chaffinch
The surname CHAFFINCH is an English name derived from the Old French word "chaffinch", which in turn comes from the Late Latin word "calaudrius". The name is believed to have originated in the 13th century, referring to someone who lived near a place where chaffinches, a type of small songbird, were found in abundance.
The earliest known record of the surname CHAFFINCH dates back to the year 1273, when a Richard Chaffinch was mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire. This suggests that the name was already established in parts of southern England by the late 13th century.
In the 14th century, the CHAFFINCH surname appeared in various spellings, such as Chaffinche, Chaffinchis, and Chaffynche, reflecting the variations in pronunciation and spelling at the time. The name was also found in several medieval records, including the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, where a John Chaffinch was listed.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the CHAFFINCH surname was William Chaffinch, a landowner from Gloucestershire who was born around 1415. He is mentioned in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Bisley in the year 1438. Another early figure was Robert Chaffinch, a merchant from Bristol, who is recorded in the Port Books of Bristol in the late 15th century.
In the 16th century, the CHAFFINCH name was found in various parts of England, including Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. One notable bearer of the name was Thomas Chaffinch, a farmer from Lincolnshire, who was born around 1530 and is mentioned in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1563.
During the 17th century, the CHAFFINCH surname continued to be present in various regions of England. One notable individual was John Chaffinch, a scholar and clergyman from Oxfordshire, who was born in 1639 and served as the Rector of Tackley from 1668 until his death in 1705.
In the 18th century, the CHAFFINCH name was found in various parts of the country, including London and the surrounding areas. One notable bearer of the name was William Chaffinch, a businessman and landowner from Hertfordshire, who was born in 1712 and is mentioned in several legal documents related to land transactions in the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chaffinch
Among Census respondents with the surname Chaffinch, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (1.0%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Chaffinch 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 Chaffinch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.0% · 96
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Chaffinch
Chaffinch 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
#140,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
+6 bearers (+5.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,374 places
2020
#156,269
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 98
-21 bearers (-17.6%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 16,112 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #140,157 | 119 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+5.3%) | Down 3,374 places |
| 2020 | #156,269 | 98 | 0.03 | -21 bearers (-17.6%) | Down 16,112 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 Chaffinch 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 | #140,157 | #156,269 | -11.5% |
| Count | 119 | 98 | -17.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -18.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Chaffinch bearers went from 119 to 98 (-17.6% change). The surname moved down 16,112 positions in the national ranking, going from #140,157 to #156,269.
FAQ
Chaffinch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Chaffinch?
Name Census estimates that about 112 living Americans carry the surname Chaffinch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,060,307 residents.
How common is Chaffinch?
Chaffinch ranks #156,269 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 98 people with the surname Chaffinch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (112), 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 Chaffinch.
Has Chaffinch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Chaffinch went from 119 recorded bearers to 98. That is a decrease of 21 (-17.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #140,157 to #156,269.
What does the Census say about the background of Chaffinch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Chaffinch, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (1.0%) and Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Chaffinch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.0% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Chaffinch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (98.0%), Black (1.0%), Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Chaffinch (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 Chaffinch mean?
A habitational surname derived from a place name referring to a finch's nest. 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 Chaffinch (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 many people share the surname Chaffinch?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.