2000
#8,106
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,769
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.40
Rare Last name
Cheeks
An English surname referring to a person with distinctive or prominent cheeks, or a nickname for a cheerful person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,514 Americans carry the last name Cheeks. That puts it at #8,067 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.32 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 75,931 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cheeks 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
4.5K
1 in 75,931
Census rank
#8,067
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,936 bearers of the surname Cheeks in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.32 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8067th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cheeks, the largest self-reported group is Black at 70.3%. The next largest groups are White (21.0%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cheeks
The surname CHEEKS is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "ceice" or "cece," meaning cheek or jaw. It likely originated as a nickname for someone with prominent cheeks or a distinctive facial feature.
The earliest recorded instance of the name dates back to the 13th century in Yorkshire, England, where a Roger Cheke was mentioned in the Feet of Fines records in 1273. The surname is believed to have originated in the northern regions of England, particularly Yorkshire and Lancashire.
One of the earliest documented references to the CHEEKS surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where a certain Alured Chec is listed as a landowner in Norfolk. This record suggests that the name had already been established as a surname by the time of the Norman Conquest.
During the Middle Ages, the CHEEKS surname appeared in various spellings, such as Cheke, Cheke, and Cheeke, reflecting the lack of standardized spelling at the time. The name was often associated with places like Cheekley in Staffordshire and Cheekfield in Derbyshire, which may have influenced the surname's development.
Notable individuals bearing the CHEEKS surname include Sir John Cheke (1514-1557), a renowned Renaissance scholar and tutor to King Edward VI of England. Another prominent figure was Henry Cheke (1515-1586), a member of the English Parliament and ambassador to the Netherlands.
In the 17th century, Captain Samuel Cheeks (1620-1670) was a prominent figure in the English Civil War, serving as a captain in the Parliamentary forces. His son, also named Samuel Cheeks (1650-1714), became a respected clergyman and author.
During the 18th century, the CHEEKS surname gained prominence with individuals like John Cheeks (1734-1803), a British naval officer who served in the American Revolutionary War, and William Cheeks (1760-1835), a wealthy merchant and landowner in Virginia, United States.
As the surname spread beyond England, it became more prevalent in other parts of the British Isles and eventually in North America, where many immigrants from England and Scotland settled, carrying the CHEEKS name with them.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cheeks
Among Census respondents with the surname Cheeks, the largest self-reported group is Black at 70.3%. The next largest groups are White (21.0%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Cheeks 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 Cheeks surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American70.3% · 2,768
- White21.0% · 825
- Two or more races5.4% · 214
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 109
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cheeks
Cheeks 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
#7,964
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,155
+386 bearers (+10.2%)
Per 100,000 1.41
Rank movement Up 142 places
2020
#8,067
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,936
-219 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 1.32
Rank movement Down 103 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,106 | 3,769 | 1.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,964 | 4,155 | 1.41 | +386 bearers (+10.2%) | Up 142 places |
| 2020 | #8,067 | 3,936 | 1.32 | -219 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 103 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 Cheeks 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 | #7,964 | #8,067 | -1.3% |
| Count | 4,155 | 3,936 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.41 | 1.32 | -6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cheeks bearers went from 4,155 to 3,936 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 103 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,964 to #8,067.
FAQ
Cheeks surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cheeks?
Name Census estimates that about 4,514 living Americans carry the surname Cheeks. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 75,931 residents.
How common is Cheeks?
Cheeks ranks #8,067 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.32 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 3,936 people with the surname Cheeks. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,514), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.32 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.32 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 Cheeks.
Has Cheeks become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cheeks went from 4,155 recorded bearers to 3,936. That is a decrease of 219 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,964 to #8,067.
What does the Census say about the background of Cheeks?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cheeks, the largest self-reported group is Black at 70.3%. The next largest groups are White (21.0%) and Two or More Races (5.4%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Cheeks in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.3% (2,768 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cheeks appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (70.3%), White (21.0%), Two or More Races (5.4%). 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 Cheeks (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 Cheeks mean?
An English surname referring to a person with distinctive or prominent cheeks, or a nickname for a cheerful person. 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 Cheeks (1.32 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 common is the surname Cheeks?
You can see how many people have the surname Cheeks on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.