Find out how popular the last name Cranston is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Cranston.

Cranston, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Cranston surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cranston in America

Cranston is the 10072nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cranston surname appeared 3,200 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Cranston.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cranston to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Cranston

The surname Cranston originated in Scotland, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the late 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "cran" meaning "crane" and "tun" meaning "enclosure" or "settlement," suggesting a connection to a place where cranes were found or a settlement named after these birds.

One of the earliest records of the name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a collection of homage rolls that recorded the names of Scottish nobles who pledged allegiance to King Edward I of England. The name appears as "Cranstoune" in these rolls, indicating its early presence in Scotland.

The Cranston family is thought to have originated in the area of East Lothian, Scotland, where the village of Cranston still exists today. The name is also associated with the town of Crailing in the Scottish Borders, which was once known as "Cranstoune" or "Cranstoune-Riddale."

In the 13th century, a prominent member of the Cranston family was Sir John Cranston, who served as the Sheriff of Roxburghshire and was present at the Battle of Largs in 1263, where the Scots defeated the Norwegians.

Another notable figure was William Cranston (c. 1590-1654), a Scottish clergyman and one of the authors of the National Covenant in 1638, a document that affirmed the Scottish Reformation and opposition to the religious policies of King Charles I.

In the 17th century, the Cranston family established itself in Ireland through the Plantation of Ulster, with members settling in counties such as Antrim and Donegal. One notable Cranston from this era was John Cranston (1625-1680), an early governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.

In the 18th century, Samuel Cranston (1659-1727) served as the governor of Rhode Island from 1698 to 1727, one of the longest tenures in the colony's history. He played a significant role in securing the colony's charter and defending its rights against encroachment from neighboring colonies.

The name Cranston has also been associated with various place names, such as Cranston, Rhode Island, which was named after the Cranston family, and Cranston Hill in Edinburgh, Scotland, which likely took its name from the nearby village of Cranston.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cranston

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Cranston.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Cranston was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Cranston has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Cranston was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Cranston, please contact us.

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