2000
#6,961
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,442
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.65
Rare Last name
Crozier
An occupational surname referring to a person who carried a bishop's staff or made crosses.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,103 Americans carry the last name Crozier. That puts it at #7,233 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.49 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 67,167 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Crozier 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 Crozier with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.1K
1 in 67,167
Census rank
#7,233
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,450 bearers of the surname Crozier in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.49 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7233rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Crozier, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Black (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Crozier
The surname CROZIER has its origins in the British Isles, specifically Scotland and Northern England. It is an occupational surname derived from the Old French word "crocier" or "croissier," which means "one who carries a crook or crosier."
In medieval times, the crosier was a staff or baton carried by bishops and abbots as a symbol of their pastoral office and authority. The name CROZIER likely referred to someone who served as a staff-bearer or attendant to a high-ranking member of the clergy.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name CROZIER can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The entry mentions a "Robertus le Crozier" in Staffordshire.
In Scotland, the name CROZIER can be traced back to the 13th century. In 1296, a "William Crocere" is mentioned in the Ragman Rolls, which were a collection of homage rolls rendered to King Edward I of England by Scottish nobles and landowners.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the CROZIER surname was prominent in the Scottish Borders region. Notable individuals from this time include John Crozier (c. 1550-1625), a Scottish Protestant minister and writer, and Andrew Crozier (1670-1738), a Scottish merchant and landowner in Ayr.
In the 18th century, the CROZIER name spread across the British Empire, with members of the family settling in North America, the Caribbean, and other British colonies. One notable figure was Brigadier General John Crozier (1726-1784), a British Army officer who served in the American Revolutionary War.
Other notable individuals with the CROZIER surname include:
- William Crozier (1786-1855), an Irish naval officer and Antarctic explorer.
- Francis Crozier (1796-1848), an Irish Royal Navy officer who served on several Arctic expeditions, including the ill-fated Franklin expedition.
- John Crozier (1856-1920), an Irish-born American prelate who served as Bishop of Zion in the Old Catholic Church.
- William Crozier (1859-1944), an Irish-born American painter and artist.
- Ralston Crozier (1891-1955), an American writer and journalist known for his travel books and novels set in the American South.
The name CROZIER has undergone various spelling variations over the centuries, including Crosier, Croziar, Crosyer, and Crossier. These variations often reflect regional dialects and language influences in different parts of the British Isles.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Crozier
Among Census respondents with the surname Crozier, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Black (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Crozier 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 Crozier surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.1% · 3,875
- Two or more races4.4% · 197
- Black or African American3.6% · 158
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 129
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 59
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 32
Timeline
Historical Census data for Crozier
Crozier 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
#7,342
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,541
+99 bearers (+2.2%)
Per 100,000 1.54
Rank movement Down 381 places
2020
#7,233
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,450
-91 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 1.49
Rank movement Up 109 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,961 | 4,442 | 1.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,342 | 4,541 | 1.54 | +99 bearers (+2.2%) | Down 381 places |
| 2020 | #7,233 | 4,450 | 1.49 | -91 bearers (-2.0%) | Up 109 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 Crozier 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 | #7,342 | #7,233 | 1.5% |
| Count | 4,541 | 4,450 | -2.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.54 | 1.49 | -3.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Crozier bearers went from 4,541 to 4,450 (-2.0% change). The surname moved up 109 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,342 to #7,233.
FAQ
Crozier surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Crozier?
Name Census estimates that about 5,103 living Americans carry the surname Crozier. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 67,167 residents.
How common is Crozier?
Crozier ranks #7,233 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.49 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 4,450 people with the surname Crozier. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,103), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.49 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.49 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 Crozier.
Has Crozier become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Crozier went from 4,541 recorded bearers to 4,450. That is a decrease of 91 (-2.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,342 to #7,233.
What does the Census say about the background of Crozier?
Among Census respondents with the surname Crozier, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Black (3.6%). 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 Crozier in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.1% (3,875 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Crozier appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.1%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Black (3.6%). 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 Crozier (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 Crozier mean?
An occupational surname referring to a person who carried a bishop's staff or made crosses. 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 Crozier (1.49 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 Crozier?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.