2000
#2,760
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,000
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.45
Uncommon Last name
Crawley
Habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "crow's woodland clearing" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 13,821 Americans carry the last name Crawley. That puts it at #2,915 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 24,800 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Crawley 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 Crawley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
14K
1 in 24,800
Census rank
#2,915
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
12K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 12,053 bearers of the surname Crawley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2915th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Crawley, the largest self-reported group is White at 57.6%. The next largest groups are Black (32.8%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Crawley
The surname Crawley has its origins in England, with records indicating its presence dating back to the 11th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "craw" and "leah," which translates to "crow meadow" or "crow clearing." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to a place where crows gathered or nested.
One of the earliest documented references to the surname Crawley can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Crauleia." This entry is thought to refer to a settlement in the county of Bedfordshire, which later became known as the town of Crawley.
During the Middle Ages, the name appeared in various spellings, including Crauueleye, Crawelegh, and Crawley, reflecting the fluid nature of spelling conventions at the time. These variations often corresponded to different regions or local dialects.
In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Crawley was Sir John Crawley (c. 1265 - 1324), a knight and landowner from Yorkshire. He served as a member of parliament and held various positions of authority in the region.
Another prominent individual with the Crawley name was Richard Crawley (c. 1540 - 1616), an English scholar and clergyman who served as the Dean of Winchester Cathedral. He is remembered for his contributions to theological discourse and his role in the translation of the King James Version of the Bible.
In the 18th century, Samuel Crawley (1705 - 1780) gained recognition as a skilled architect and surveyor. He designed several notable buildings in London, including the church of St. Mary Woolnoth and the Foundling Hospital.
The surname Crawley has also been associated with several place names in England, such as Crawley Down in West Sussex and Crawley Green in Buckinghamshire. These locations likely derived their names from the surname or vice versa, reflecting the close connection between surnames and geographic locations in British history.
Another significant figure bearing the Crawley name was Richard Crawley (1840 - 1893), a renowned translator and scholar of Greek and Sanskrit literature. His translations of works by Homer, Aeschylus, and the ancient Indian epic Ramayana are widely acclaimed and have contributed to the understanding of these literary masterpieces in the English-speaking world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Crawley
Among Census respondents with the surname Crawley, the largest self-reported group is White at 57.6%. The next largest groups are Black (32.8%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Crawley 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 Crawley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White57.6% · 6,938
- Black or African American32.8% · 3,954
- Two or more races5.6% · 673
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 341
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 76
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 71
Timeline
Historical Census data for Crawley
Crawley 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
#2,874
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,523
+523 bearers (+4.4%)
Per 100,000 4.25
Rank movement Down 114 places
2020
#2,915
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,053
-470 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 4.03
Rank movement Down 41 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,760 | 12,000 | 4.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,874 | 12,523 | 4.25 | +523 bearers (+4.4%) | Down 114 places |
| 2020 | #2,915 | 12,053 | 4.03 | -470 bearers (-3.8%) | Down 41 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 Crawley 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 | #2,874 | #2,915 | -1.4% |
| Count | 12,523 | 12,053 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 4.25 | 4.03 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Crawley bearers went from 12,523 to 12,053 (-3.8% change). The surname moved down 41 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,874 to #2,915.
FAQ
Crawley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Crawley?
Name Census estimates that about 13,821 living Americans carry the surname Crawley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 24,800 residents.
How common is Crawley?
Crawley ranks #2,915 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 12,053 people with the surname Crawley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (13,821), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Crawley.
Has Crawley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Crawley went from 12,523 recorded bearers to 12,053. That is a decrease of 470 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,874 to #2,915.
What does the Census say about the background of Crawley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Crawley, the largest self-reported group is White at 57.6%. The next largest groups are Black (32.8%) and Two or More Races (5.6%). 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 Crawley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 57.6% (6,938 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Crawley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (57.6%), Black (32.8%), Two or More Races (5.6%). 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 Crawley (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 Crawley mean?
Habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "crow's woodland clearing" in Old English. 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 Crawley (4.03 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 Crawley?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Crawley, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.