2000
#5,257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,096
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.26
Rare Last name
Chilton
A locational surname referring to various places in England meaning "town by a spring or stream."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,667 Americans carry the last name Chilton. That puts it at #5,739 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.95 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,411 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Chilton 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 Chilton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.7K
1 in 51,411
Census rank
#5,739
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,814 bearers of the surname Chilton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.95 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5739th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Chilton, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.8%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Chilton
The surname Chilton is of English origin and can be traced back to the 11th century. It is a locational name derived from any of several places called Chilton, found in various counties across England, such as Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Suffolk. The name is a combination of the Old English words "cild" meaning "child" and "tun" meaning "town" or "settlement", suggesting it was originally a place inhabited by children or young people.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Chilton appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Cilitone" in Buckinghamshire. This document, commissioned by William the Conqueror, provides a comprehensive record of landholdings and settlements throughout England at the time.
In the 13th century, a notable bearer of the name was Sir Roger de Chilton, a knight from Oxfordshire who fought in the Crusades. He is recorded in the Roll of Arms of the 13th century, a collection of heraldic arms used by knights and nobles during that period.
Another significant figure was Sir Thomas Chilton (c.1500-1566), a Member of Parliament for Devizes in Wiltshire during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He played a role in the establishment of the Church of England and was a prominent landowner in the region.
In the 17th century, the name appeared in various spellings, including Chelton, Chylton, and Chillington. One such individual was John Chilton (1614-1692), an English Puritan minister and author who emigrated to New England and served as a pastor in Ipswich, Massachusetts.
Moving into the 18th century, a notable bearer of the name was James Chilton (1723-1796), an English engraver and artist known for his landscape and architectural etchings. His works documented many historical buildings and sites in England during that era.
As the name spread across different parts of England, it also became associated with various place names, such as Chilton Candover in Hampshire, Chilton Polden in Somerset, and Chilton Trinity in Bridgwater, Somerset.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chilton
Among Census respondents with the surname Chilton, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.8%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Chilton 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 Chilton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.8% · 4,815
- Black or African American7.3% · 422
- Two or more races4.3% · 249
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 192
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.4% · 83
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 53
Timeline
Historical Census data for Chilton
Chilton 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
#5,551
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,263
+167 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 2.12
Rank movement Down 294 places
2020
#5,739
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,814
-449 bearers (-7.2%)
Per 100,000 1.95
Rank movement Down 188 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,257 | 6,096 | 2.26 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,551 | 6,263 | 2.12 | +167 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 294 places |
| 2020 | #5,739 | 5,814 | 1.95 | -449 bearers (-7.2%) | Down 188 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 Chilton 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 | #5,551 | #5,739 | -3.4% |
| Count | 6,263 | 5,814 | -7.2% |
| Per 100K | 2.12 | 1.95 | -8.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Chilton bearers went from 6,263 to 5,814 (-7.2% change). The surname moved down 188 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,551 to #5,739.
FAQ
Chilton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Chilton?
Name Census estimates that about 6,667 living Americans carry the surname Chilton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,411 residents.
How common is Chilton?
Chilton ranks #5,739 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.95 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,814 people with the surname Chilton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,667), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.95 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.95 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Chilton.
Has Chilton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Chilton went from 6,263 recorded bearers to 5,814. That is a decrease of 449 (-7.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,551 to #5,739.
What does the Census say about the background of Chilton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Chilton, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.8%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Chilton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.8% (4,815 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Chilton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.8%), Black (7.3%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Chilton (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 Chilton mean?
A locational surname referring to various places in England meaning "town by a spring or stream." 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 Chilton (1.95 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 have the last name Chilton?
Want to know how many people are called Chilton? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.