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

Danford, 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 Danford surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Danford in America

Danford is the 11644th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Danford surname appeared 2,692 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 Danford.

We can also compare 2010 data for Danford 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 Danford

The surname Danford is of English origin and dates back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "dene" meaning valley and "ford" meaning a shallow river crossing, suggesting that the name likely referred to someone who lived near a ford in a valley.

Historically, the name Danford has been found in various old records and manuscripts from the 13th century onwards. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, which mentions a William de Deneford.

In the 14th century, the surname appeared in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327, where a John Daneford was listed as a taxpayer. The name was also present in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1376, which recorded a transaction involving a Richard Danford.

One notable bearer of the Danford surname was Sir John Danford (c. 1540-1610), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Arundel during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

Another historical figure with this surname was Robert Danford (1625-1667), an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works, including "A Guide to Eternity" published in 1660.

In the 18th century, the name Danford can be found in various parish records, such as the baptism of Thomas Danford in 1723 at St. Mary's Church in Islington, London.

The 19th century saw several Danfords making their mark in different fields. One such individual was William Danford (1802-1876), a British architect known for designing numerous churches and public buildings in London and the surrounding areas.

Another notable bearer of the Danford surname was Sir Frederic John Danford (1839-1921), a British naval officer and explorer who led several expeditions to the Arctic regions and served as the Governor of New South Wales from 1899 to 1904.

While the surname Danford has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including North America and Australia, due to migration and exploration in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Danford

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

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 Danford 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 Danford 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 Danford was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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