2000
#890
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 35,539
First available Census row
Per 100,000 13.17
Uncommon Last name
Church
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near or worked at a church.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 39,246 Americans carry the last name Church. That puts it at #1,002 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 11.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 8,733 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Church 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 Church with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
39K
1 in 8,733
Census rank
#1,002
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
11.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
34K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 34,224 bearers of the surname Church in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 11.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1002nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Church, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.6%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Church
The surname CHURCH is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "cirice" or "circe," meaning a church or a religious building. It is believed to have emerged as a surname during the medieval period, likely in the late 11th or early 12th century.
The name was originally used to identify individuals who lived near a church or were employed in some capacity by the church. It may have also been used as a descriptive surname for those who were particularly religious or devout.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname CHURCH can be found in various historical records and documents from the 12th and 13th centuries. For example, the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1190 mention a "Willelmus de la Churche," suggesting that the name was already in use at that time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was William Atte Chirche, who was mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296. The use of the prefix "atte" (meaning "at the") further reinforces the connection between the name and the physical location of a church.
During the medieval period, the name CHURCH was also associated with various place names that incorporated the word "church," such as Churchdown in Gloucestershire, Churchstanton in Somerset, and Churchover in Warwickshire. These place names likely influenced the adoption and spread of the surname in those areas.
Notable individuals with the surname CHURCH throughout history include:
1. Benjamin Church (c. 1639-1718), a famous English colonial military leader and ranger during King William's War and Queen Anne's War.
2. Richard Church (1784-1873), an English painter and etcher known for his landscape and architectural works.
3. Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900), an American landscape painter renowned for his large-scale paintings of natural scenery.
4. Alonzo Church (1903-1995), an American mathematician and logician who made significant contributions to the fields of computer science and logic.
5. Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965), the renowned British statesman, orator, and Prime Minister during World War II, who was not directly related to the CHURCH surname but shared a similar name.
While the surname CHURCH has its roots in English history and language, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including North America, Australia, and other English-speaking countries, through migration and cultural exchange.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Church
Among Census respondents with the surname Church, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.6%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Church 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 Church surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.0% · 29,430
- Black or African American5.6% · 1,932
- Two or more races4.0% · 1,372
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 1,017
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 254
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 219
Timeline
Historical Census data for Church
Church 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
#966
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 36,072
+533 bearers (+1.5%)
Per 100,000 12.23
Rank movement Down 76 places
2020
#1,002
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 34,224
-1,848 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 11.45
Rank movement Down 36 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #890 | 35,539 | 13.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #966 | 36,072 | 12.23 | +533 bearers (+1.5%) | Down 76 places |
| 2020 | #1,002 | 34,224 | 11.45 | -1,848 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 36 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 Church 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 | #966 | #1,002 | -3.7% |
| Count | 36,072 | 34,224 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 12.23 | 11.45 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Church bearers went from 36,072 to 34,224 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 36 positions in the national ranking, going from #966 to #1,002.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Church
FAQ
Church surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Church?
Name Census estimates that about 39,246 living Americans carry the surname Church. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 8,733 residents.
How common is Church?
Church ranks #1,002 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 11.45 per 100,000 residents, which is about 11 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 34,224 people with the surname Church. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (39,246), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 11.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 11.45 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 11 of them to have the surname Church.
Has Church become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Church went from 36,072 recorded bearers to 34,224. That is a decrease of 1,848 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #966 to #1,002.
What does the Census say about the background of Church?
Among Census respondents with the surname Church, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.6%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Church in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.0% (29,430 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Church appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.0%), Black (5.6%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Church (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 Church mean?
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near or worked at a church. 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 Church (11.45 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 Church?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Church, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.