2000
#116,123
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 139
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Cheseldine
A surname derived from an English place name meaning "valley of the chestnut trees" or "chestnut valley".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Cheseldine. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cheseldine 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Cheseldine in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cheseldine, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (3.4%) and Black (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cheseldine
The surname Cheseldine is of English origin and dates back to the 13th century. It is thought to have derived from the Old English words "cesel" meaning pebble or gravel, and "denu" meaning valley, suggesting the name originated from someone who lived in a pebbly or gravelly valley.
The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears to be Cheseldon in the Hundred Rolls of Staffordshire in 1273. Other early spellings include Cheseldyn in the Pipe Rolls of Sussex in 1332 and Chisseldine in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield, Yorkshire in 1379.
The name is believed to have originated in the counties of Staffordshire and Derbyshire, where there are several place names containing variations of the name, such as Chesledon and Chisseldine. These place names likely derived from the same Old English words that gave rise to the surname.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Cheseldine was John Cheseldine, who was mentioned in the Register of the Gild of the Holy Cross in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire in 1392.
Another notable figure was William Cheseldine, who was born in Derbyshire in 1585 and served as a member of the English Parliament during the English Civil War in the 1640s.
In the 17th century, the name Cheseldine appears in parish records in the counties of Staffordshire, Derbyshire, and Cheshire, indicating a concentration of the surname in these areas.
In the 18th century, a prominent individual named Samuel Cheseldine (1710-1784) was a successful merchant and landowner in the city of Bristol.
During the 19th century, a family by the name of Cheseldine owned a successful pottery business in the town of Longton, Staffordshire, which was part of the famous Staffordshire Potteries region.
While the surname Cheseldine is not among the most common surnames in England, it has a rich history spanning several centuries and has been associated with various notable individuals throughout its origins in the English Midlands.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cheseldine
Among Census respondents with the surname Cheseldine, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (3.4%) and Black (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Cheseldine 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 Cheseldine surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 111
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.4% · 4
- Black or African American2.5% · 3
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cheseldine
Cheseldine 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
#120,187
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 144
+5 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 4,064 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-25 bearers (-17.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 22,601 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #116,123 | 139 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #120,187 | 144 | 0.05 | +5 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 4,064 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -25 bearers (-17.4%) | Down 22,601 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 Cheseldine 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 | #120,187 | #142,788 | -18.8% |
| Count | 144 | 119 | -17.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -20.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cheseldine bearers went from 144 to 119 (-17.4% change). The surname moved down 22,601 positions in the national ranking, going from #120,187 to #142,788.
FAQ
Cheseldine surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cheseldine?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Cheseldine. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Cheseldine?
Cheseldine ranks #142,788 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 119 people with the surname Cheseldine. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Cheseldine.
Has Cheseldine become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cheseldine went from 144 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 25 (-17.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #120,187 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Cheseldine?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cheseldine, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (3.4%) and Black (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 Cheseldine in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cheseldine appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.4%), Black (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 Cheseldine (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 Cheseldine mean?
A surname derived from an English place name meaning "valley of the chestnut trees" or "chestnut valley". 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 Cheseldine (0.04 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 Cheseldine?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.