2000
#12,490
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,278
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Conerly
Derived from a place name meaning "rabbit clearing" in Old English, referring to someone who lived there.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,656 Americans carry the last name Conerly. That puts it at #12,730 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 129,049 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Conerly 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
2.7K
1 in 129,049
Census rank
#12,730
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,316 bearers of the surname Conerly in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12730th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Conerly, the largest self-reported group is Black at 58.2%. The next largest groups are White (35.7%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Conerly
The surname Conerly has its origins in England, specifically in the county of Wiltshire, where it first emerged in the 12th century. Derived from the Old English words "coner" and "leah," which respectively mean "conor" (a type of rabbit) and "woodland clearing," the name likely referred to an individual who lived or worked in an area inhabited by rabbits.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Conerly surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Wiltshire from 1195, where a certain William Conerly is listed as a landowner. In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as "Conerelee" and "Conereslegh," reflecting the regional dialect and spelling variations of the time.
During the medieval period, the Conerly family was well-established in the village of Conereslegh, now known as Conerly, near the town of Marlborough in Wiltshire. This village likely took its name from the family, further solidifying their connection to the area.
Notable individuals bearing the Conerly surname throughout history include:
1. Sir John Conerly (c. 1390-1458), a prominent English landowner and member of Parliament for Wiltshire during the reigns of Henry V and Henry VI.
2. Thomas Conerly (1605-1672), an English Puritan clergyman who emigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony and served as a minister in Salem, Massachusetts.
3. Edward Conerly (1733-1804), a British naval officer who participated in various battles during the American Revolutionary War and later served as a Royal Navy captain.
4. Charlotte Conerly (1786-1867), an English author and poet known for her collection of romantic verses titled "Echoes of the Heart" (1835).
5. William Conerly (1819-1892), an American politician from Mississippi who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1857 to 1861.
While the Conerly surname may have had various spellings in its early history, it has maintained a strong connection to its English roots, particularly in the county of Wiltshire, where it originated and flourished for centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Conerly
Among Census respondents with the surname Conerly, the largest self-reported group is Black at 58.2%. The next largest groups are White (35.7%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Conerly 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 Conerly surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American58.2% · 1,347
- White35.7% · 827
- Two or more races3.5% · 80
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 56
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Conerly
Conerly 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
#12,760
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,418
+140 bearers (+6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 270 places
2020
#12,730
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,316
-102 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Up 30 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,490 | 2,278 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,760 | 2,418 | 0.82 | +140 bearers (+6.1%) | Down 270 places |
| 2020 | #12,730 | 2,316 | 0.77 | -102 bearers (-4.2%) | Up 30 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 Conerly 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 | #12,760 | #12,730 | 0.2% |
| Count | 2,418 | 2,316 | -4.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.82 | 0.77 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Conerly bearers went from 2,418 to 2,316 (-4.2% change). The surname moved up 30 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,760 to #12,730.
FAQ
Conerly surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Conerly?
Name Census estimates that about 2,656 living Americans carry the surname Conerly. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 129,049 residents.
How common is Conerly?
Conerly ranks #12,730 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.77 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 2,316 people with the surname Conerly. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,656), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.77 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 Conerly.
Has Conerly become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Conerly went from 2,418 recorded bearers to 2,316. That is a decrease of 102 (-4.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,760 to #12,730.
What does the Census say about the background of Conerly?
Among Census respondents with the surname Conerly, the largest self-reported group is Black at 58.2%. The next largest groups are White (35.7%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Conerly in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.2% (1,347 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Conerly appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (58.2%), White (35.7%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Conerly (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 Conerly mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "rabbit clearing" in Old English, referring to someone who lived there. 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 Conerly (0.77 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 Conerly?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.