2000
#1,931
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,136
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.35
Uncommon Last name
Crowell
Derived from a place name meaning "crow's hill" or "crow's spring" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 18,571 Americans carry the last name Crowell. That puts it at #2,193 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.42 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 18,456 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Crowell 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
19K
1 in 18,456
Census rank
#2,193
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
16K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 16,195 bearers of the surname Crowell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.42 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2193rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Crowell, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Crowell
The surname Crowell originated in England, with the earliest known records dating back to the late 12th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Old English words "cru" (meaning "pen" or "enclosure") and "well" (meaning a source of water or a spring), suggesting it may have initially referred to someone living near a fenced-in spring or well.
One of the earliest references to the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1195, which mention a person named Reginald de Crouwell. This spelling variation suggests the name may have evolved from a place name, possibly a location with a fenced-in well or spring.
In the 13th century, the Hundred Rolls of Buckinghamshire recorded a William de Crouwell, providing further evidence of the name's early existence in different parts of England. The Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327 also listed a John Crowell, showcasing the gradual transition towards the more modern spelling.
One notable historical figure with the surname Crowell was Andrew Crowell (c. 1592-1672), an early American settler who arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1630s and became a prominent landowner and community leader in the town of Yarmouth. His descendants played a role in the American Revolutionary War.
Another significant individual was Samuel Crowell (1635-1725), a Quaker preacher and author from Pennsylvania, who wrote several influential religious works and helped establish the Society of Friends in the Delaware Valley region.
In the 18th century, John Crowell (1735-1816) was a distinguished soldier who served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and later became a prominent judge in New York.
Towards the end of the 19th century, John Franklin Crowell (1857-1947) was a successful American publisher and founded the Crowell Publishing Company, which played a significant role in the publishing industry for many decades.
Lastly, Edward Payson Crowell (1830-1901) was a notable American lawyer, politician, and diplomat who served as the United States Assistant Secretary of the Treasury under President Ulysses S. Grant and later as the Chief of the Bureau of Statistics.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Crowell
Among Census respondents with the surname Crowell, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Crowell 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 Crowell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.6% · 12,399
- Black or African American14.1% · 2,289
- Two or more races4.3% · 698
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 534
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 184
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 91
Timeline
Historical Census data for Crowell
Crowell 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
#2,071
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,467
+331 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 5.92
Rank movement Down 140 places
2020
#2,193
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,195
-1,272 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 5.42
Rank movement Down 122 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,931 | 17,136 | 6.35 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,071 | 17,467 | 5.92 | +331 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 140 places |
| 2020 | #2,193 | 16,195 | 5.42 | -1,272 bearers (-7.3%) | Down 122 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 Crowell 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 | #2,071 | #2,193 | -5.9% |
| Count | 17,467 | 16,195 | -7.3% |
| Per 100K | 5.92 | 5.42 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Crowell bearers went from 17,467 to 16,195 (-7.3% change). The surname moved down 122 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,071 to #2,193.
FAQ
Crowell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Crowell?
Name Census estimates that about 18,571 living Americans carry the surname Crowell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 18,456 residents.
How common is Crowell?
Crowell ranks #2,193 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.42 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 16,195 people with the surname Crowell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (18,571), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.42 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.42 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Crowell.
Has Crowell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Crowell went from 17,467 recorded bearers to 16,195. That is a decrease of 1,272 (-7.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,071 to #2,193.
What does the Census say about the background of Crowell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Crowell, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.1%) 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 Crowell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.6% (12,399 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Crowell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.6%), Black (14.1%), 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 Crowell (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 Crowell mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "crow's hill" or "crow's spring" 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 Crowell (5.42 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 surname Crowell?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.