2000
#12,100
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,365
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Crown
A surname referring to a person who lived near a rounded hill, or one who wore a crown.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,628 Americans carry the last name Crown. That puts it at #12,827 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 130,424 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Crown 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 Crown with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 130,424
Census rank
#12,827
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,292 bearers of the surname Crown in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12827th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Crown, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Black (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Crown
The surname Crown is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "crun" or "crune," meaning a crown or garland. It is believed to have originated as an occupational name for someone who made or sold crowns or garlands, or perhaps a nickname for someone who wore a distinctive hat or headgear resembling a crown.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273, where it appears as "Robert Crune." The name is also found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1301, listed as "Thomas del Croun."
During the Middle Ages, the Crown surname was particularly prevalent in the counties of Yorkshire, Oxfordshire, and Gloucestershire. It is possible that some variations of the name, such as Croun, Crouner, or Crowner, may have referred to the position of a coroner, derived from the Old French term "corouner" or "crouner."
One notable bearer of the Crown surname was Sir John Crown, a merchant and Lord Mayor of London in 1619. He was born in 1575 and played a significant role in the development of the East India Company.
Another individual of historical significance was John Crown, a Puritan minister born in 1642 in Norwich, England. He emigrated to New England in the late 17th century and became a prominent figure in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
In the literary world, John Crowne (1640-1712) was an English playwright and author who wrote several successful plays during the Restoration period, including "The Conquest of Granada" and "Calisto, or The Chaste Nymph."
The Crown surname also appears in Scottish records, with variations such as Croun or Croune. One notable bearer was Sir Alexander Croun, a Scottish knight who fought alongside King Robert the Bruce in the Wars of Scottish Independence in the early 14th century.
Another significant figure was Edward Crowne (1572-1617), an English theologian and academic who served as the Regius Professor of Divinity at the University of Cambridge from 1610 until his death.
While these are just a few examples, the surname Crown has a rich history that spans multiple centuries and regions, reflecting its origins as an occupational or descriptive name related to the symbolic crown or garland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Crown
Among Census respondents with the surname Crown, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Black (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Crown 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 Crown surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.8% · 1,966
- Black or African American4.2% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 85
- Two or more races3.6% · 82
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 43
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Crown
Crown 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
#12,644
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,447
+82 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 544 places
2020
#12,827
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,292
-155 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 183 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,100 | 2,365 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,644 | 2,447 | 0.83 | +82 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 544 places |
| 2020 | #12,827 | 2,292 | 0.77 | -155 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 183 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 Crown 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 | #12,644 | #12,827 | -1.4% |
| Count | 2,447 | 2,292 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.83 | 0.77 | -7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Crown bearers went from 2,447 to 2,292 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 183 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,644 to #12,827.
FAQ
Crown surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Crown?
Name Census estimates that about 2,628 living Americans carry the surname Crown. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 130,424 residents.
How common is Crown?
Crown ranks #12,827 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 2,292 people with the surname Crown. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,628), 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 Crown.
Has Crown become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Crown went from 2,447 recorded bearers to 2,292. That is a decrease of 155 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,644 to #12,827.
What does the Census say about the background of Crown?
Among Census respondents with the surname Crown, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Black (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Crown in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.8% (1,966 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Crown appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.8%), Black (4.2%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Crown (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 Crown mean?
A surname referring to a person who lived near a rounded hill, or one who wore a crown. 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 Crown (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 common is the surname Crown?
See how common the surname Crown is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.