2000
#3,334
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,837
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.65
Uncommon Last name
Charlton
From an English place name meaning "settlement of free peasants," derived from the Old English words ceorl and tun.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,361 Americans carry the last name Charlton. That puts it at #3,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 30,169 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Charlton 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 Charlton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 30,169
Census rank
#3,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.9K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,907 bearers of the surname Charlton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Charlton, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.1%. The next largest groups are Black (14.4%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Charlton
The surname Charlton is of English origin and derives from the Old English words 'ceorl' meaning a freeman, and 'tun' meaning an enclosure or settlement. It first emerged as a locational name for someone who lived in the town of Charlton.
Charlton is found in various parts of England, such as Charlton in Wiltshire, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, and Kent. The name is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as 'Cerlentone' and 'Certone' in Wiltshire, and 'Cerletone' in Berkshire.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Charlton is Walter de Cherletun, who is mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1190. Another early record is that of William de Cherleton, who is listed in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1272.
Charlton became a prominent name in various parts of England, and several notable individuals bore this surname throughout history. Sir Robert Charlton (c. 1543-1628) was a wealthy English landowner and Member of Parliament for Great Grimsby. Sir Job Charlton (1614-1692) was an English judge and Speaker of the House of Commons.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the Charlton surname is that of Robert Charlton, who was born in England and settled in Virginia in the 17th century. He served as a burgess in the Virginia House of Burgesses in the 1650s.
Other notable individuals with the surname Charlton include: John Charlton (1785-1854), an English naturalist and author; Henry Charlton (1834-1904), an English cricketer; Walter Charlton (1554-1617), an English Catholic priest and martyr; and Guy Charlton (born 1939), an English actor best known for his role in the television series 'Howards' Way'.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Charlton
Among Census respondents with the surname Charlton, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.1%. The next largest groups are Black (14.4%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Charlton 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 Charlton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.1% · 7,637
- Black or African American14.4% · 1,428
- Two or more races4.1% · 404
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 312
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 72
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 54
Timeline
Historical Census data for Charlton
Charlton 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
#3,383
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,555
+718 bearers (+7.3%)
Per 100,000 3.58
Rank movement Down 49 places
2020
#3,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,907
-648 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 3.31
Rank movement Down 128 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,334 | 9,837 | 3.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,383 | 10,555 | 3.58 | +718 bearers (+7.3%) | Down 49 places |
| 2020 | #3,511 | 9,907 | 3.31 | -648 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 128 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 Charlton 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 | #3,383 | #3,511 | -3.8% |
| Count | 10,555 | 9,907 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 3.58 | 3.31 | -7.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Charlton bearers went from 10,555 to 9,907 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 128 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,383 to #3,511.
FAQ
Charlton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Charlton?
Name Census estimates that about 11,361 living Americans carry the surname Charlton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 30,169 residents.
How common is Charlton?
Charlton ranks #3,511 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.31 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,907 people with the surname Charlton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,361), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.31 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Charlton.
Has Charlton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Charlton went from 10,555 recorded bearers to 9,907. That is a decrease of 648 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,383 to #3,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Charlton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Charlton, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.1%. The next largest groups are Black (14.4%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Charlton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.1% (7,637 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Charlton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.1%), Black (14.4%), Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Charlton (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 Charlton mean?
From an English place name meaning "settlement of free peasants," derived from the Old English words ceorl and tun. 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 Charlton (3.31 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 Charlton?
See how many people have the surname Charlton on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.