2000
#8,019
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,815
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.41
Rare Last name
Champlin
A French occupational surname for a merchant or dealer, derived from the Old French word "chancelier" meaning chancellor.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,241 Americans carry the last name Champlin. That puts it at #8,544 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 80,819 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Champlin 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
4.2K
1 in 80,819
Census rank
#8,544
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,698 bearers of the surname Champlin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8544th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Champlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Champlin
The surname CHAMPLIN is of French origin and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French word "champlin," which means "a small field" or "a little plain." This name was likely originally given as a topographic name to someone who lived near a small, flat area of land.
The earliest recorded instances of the CHAMPLIN surname come from records in Normandy, France, dating back to the 12th century. It is believed that the name may have originated in this region and then spread to other parts of France and eventually to England and other parts of Europe.
In England, the CHAMPLIN surname is first mentioned in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which were a record of landowners and their holdings. This suggests that people with this surname had already established themselves in England by the 13th century.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the CHAMPLIN surname was a certain Robert Champlin, who was documented in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1206. Another early bearer of this name was William Champlin, who was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1224.
During the Middle Ages, the CHAMPLIN surname also appeared in various spellings, such as Champlain, Champlen, and Champlion, reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling at the time.
Notable individuals with the CHAMPLIN surname throughout history include:
1. Samuel Champlin (1789-1870), an American businessman and politician who served as the 25th Governor of Rhode Island from 1839 to 1840.
2. John Denison Champlin (1834-1915), an American literary critic and editor who wrote extensively on works of literature and published several books on the subject.
3. Jacques Champlin (1590-1670), a French Jesuit priest and explorer who is credited with founding the first European settlement in what is now the state of Michigan.
4. Mary Champlin (1865-1934), an American artist and painter known for her landscape and still life works, many of which were exhibited at prestigious galleries in New York City.
5. Richard Champlin (1737-1807), a British officer in the Royal Navy who served during the American Revolutionary War and later became a member of Parliament.
The CHAMPLIN surname has also been associated with various place names, such as Champlin Creek in Rhode Island and Champlin Bay in Wisconsin, further highlighting its historical significance and geographic spread.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Champlin
Among Census respondents with the surname Champlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Champlin 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 Champlin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 3,341
- Two or more races4.6% · 169
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 94
- Black or African American1.1% · 41
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 27
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 26
Timeline
Historical Census data for Champlin
Champlin 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
#8,121
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,084
+269 bearers (+7.1%)
Per 100,000 1.38
Rank movement Down 102 places
2020
#8,544
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,698
-386 bearers (-9.5%)
Per 100,000 1.24
Rank movement Down 423 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,019 | 3,815 | 1.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,121 | 4,084 | 1.38 | +269 bearers (+7.1%) | Down 102 places |
| 2020 | #8,544 | 3,698 | 1.24 | -386 bearers (-9.5%) | Down 423 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 Champlin 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 | #8,121 | #8,544 | -5.2% |
| Count | 4,084 | 3,698 | -9.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.38 | 1.24 | -10.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Champlin bearers went from 4,084 to 3,698 (-9.5% change). The surname moved down 423 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,121 to #8,544.
FAQ
Champlin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Champlin?
Name Census estimates that about 4,241 living Americans carry the surname Champlin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 80,819 residents.
How common is Champlin?
Champlin ranks #8,544 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.24 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,698 people with the surname Champlin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,241), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.24 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Champlin.
Has Champlin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Champlin went from 4,084 recorded bearers to 3,698. That is a decrease of 386 (-9.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,121 to #8,544.
What does the Census say about the background of Champlin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Champlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Champlin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (3,341 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Champlin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Two or More Races (4.6%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Champlin (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 Champlin mean?
A French occupational surname for a merchant or dealer, derived from the Old French word "chancelier" meaning chancellor. 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 Champlin (1.24 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 Champlin?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.