2000
#1,953
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,900
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.26
Uncommon Last name
Champion
A nickname for a skilled fighter or a metonymic occupational name for an athlete or swordsman.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 19,332 Americans carry the last name Champion. That puts it at #2,086 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.64 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 17,730 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Champion 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Champion with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
19K
1 in 17,730
Census rank
#2,086
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
17K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 16,858 bearers of the surname Champion in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.64 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2086th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Champion, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.5%. The next largest groups are Black (19.9%) and Hispanic (6.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Champion
The surname Champion originated in France during the Middle Ages. It derived from the Old French word "champion," meaning a brave warrior or knight who fought in tournaments or battles. The name was likely first given as a nickname to someone who excelled in combat or displayed exceptional courage and skill on the battlefield.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Champion can be found in medieval French records and documents from the 12th and 13th centuries. One notable example is the mention of a knight named Raoul Champion in the "Livre des Conquestes et des Faicts des Normands" (Book of the Conquests and Deeds of the Normans), written in the late 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, the Champion surname was particularly prevalent in the northern regions of France, particularly in Normandy and Brittany. This is likely due to the region's rich history of knighthood and military prowess, as well as the influence of the Norman conquest of England in 1066, which led to the establishment of a Norman aristocracy in Britain.
Over time, the surname spread across Europe and beyond, carried by individuals and families migrating to new lands. In England, the name can be traced back to the 13th century, with records showing individuals named Champion residing in various counties, such as Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire.
One notable figure bearing the Champion surname was Sir John Champion (c. 1569-1643), an English nobleman and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Lincolnshire during the reign of King James I. Another prominent individual was René Champion (1534-1568), a French Huguenot minister and theologian who played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation in France.
Other historical figures with the surname Champion include Jean-Baptiste Champion de Villeneuve (1737-1809), a French naval officer and admiral who participated in several major battles during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and George Champion (1851-1927), a British botanist and naturalist best known for his work on the flora of Central America.
The Champion surname has also been associated with various place names, such as the village of Champigny in France, which may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the name in certain regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Champion
Among Census respondents with the surname Champion, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.5%. The next largest groups are Black (19.9%) and Hispanic (6.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Champion 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 Champion surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White68.5% · 11,541
- Black or African American19.9% · 3,360
- Hispanic or Latino6.4% · 1,073
- Two or more races4.4% · 741
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 89
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 54
Timeline
Historical Census data for Champion
Champion 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
#2,058
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,527
+627 bearers (+3.7%)
Per 100,000 5.94
Rank movement Down 105 places
2020
#2,086
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,858
-669 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 5.64
Rank movement Down 28 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,953 | 16,900 | 6.26 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,058 | 17,527 | 5.94 | +627 bearers (+3.7%) | Down 105 places |
| 2020 | #2,086 | 16,858 | 5.64 | -669 bearers (-3.8%) | Down 28 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 Champion 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 | #2,058 | #2,086 | -1.4% |
| Count | 17,527 | 16,858 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 5.94 | 5.64 | -5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Champion bearers went from 17,527 to 16,858 (-3.8% change). The surname moved down 28 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,058 to #2,086.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Champion
FAQ
Champion surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Champion?
Name Census estimates that about 19,332 living Americans carry the surname Champion. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 17,730 residents.
How common is Champion?
Champion ranks #2,086 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.64 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 16,858 people with the surname Champion. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (19,332), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.64 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.64 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Champion.
Has Champion become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Champion went from 17,527 recorded bearers to 16,858. That is a decrease of 669 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,058 to #2,086.
What does the Census say about the background of Champion?
Among Census respondents with the surname Champion, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.5%. The next largest groups are Black (19.9%) and Hispanic (6.4%). 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 Champion in the 2020 Census, accounting for 68.5% (11,541 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Champion appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (68.5%), Black (19.9%), Hispanic (6.4%). 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 Champion (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 Champion mean?
A nickname for a skilled fighter or a metonymic occupational name for an athlete or swordsman. 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 Champion (5.64 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 are called Champion?
Want to know how many people are called Champion? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.