2000
#9,662
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,086
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.14
Rare Last name
Darlington
A locational surname derived from the market town of Darlington in County Durham, England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,110 Americans carry the last name Darlington. That puts it at #11,162 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 110,210 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Darlington 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 Darlington with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.1K
1 in 110,210
Census rank
#11,162
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,712 bearers of the surname Darlington in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11162nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Darlington, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.0%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Darlington
The surname Darlington originated in England and can be traced back to the early 12th century. It is a locational name derived from the town of Darlington in County Durham, which itself took its name from the Old English words 'deor' meaning deer and 'inga' meaning people or the people of the deer.
The earliest known record of the Darlington surname appears in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, where one Robert de Derlingtona is listed. This suggests that the name was already well-established by the late 12th century.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, the town of Darlington is referred to as 'Derinctun', an earlier spelling that reflects the Old English origins of the name. Other early variations of the surname include Derlington, Derlingtone, and Derlyngton.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Darlington surname was Sir Ralph Darlington, a knight who was born around 1290 and served under King Edward III in the Scottish Wars of Independence. In 1335, he was appointed Constable of Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland.
Another notable figure was Thomas Darlington, born in 1457, who was a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne during the late 15th century.
In the 17th century, William Darlington (1589-1654) was an English clergyman and author, best known for his work 'The Honour of Lady-Eminence', published in 1642.
The 18th century saw the birth of Abraham Darlington (1711-1777), an English botanist and physician who made significant contributions to the study of plant life in Pennsylvania, USA.
Finally, in the 19th century, Ralph Darlington (1824-1903) was a prominent English railway engineer and inventor, known for his work on the development of the steam locomotive and his patented designs for railway track components.
Throughout its history, the Darlington surname has been closely associated with the town of Darlington and the surrounding regions of northern England, though bearers of the name can now be found worldwide.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Darlington
Among Census respondents with the surname Darlington, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.0%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Darlington 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 Darlington surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.6% · 2,132
- Black or African American14.0% · 381
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 97
- Two or more races2.8% · 77
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Darlington
Darlington 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
#10,107
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,187
+101 bearers (+3.3%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Down 445 places
2020
#11,162
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,712
-475 bearers (-14.9%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Down 1,055 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,662 | 3,086 | 1.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,107 | 3,187 | 1.08 | +101 bearers (+3.3%) | Down 445 places |
| 2020 | #11,162 | 2,712 | 0.91 | -475 bearers (-14.9%) | Down 1,055 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 Darlington 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 | #10,107 | #11,162 | -10.4% |
| Count | 3,187 | 2,712 | -14.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 0.91 | -16.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Darlington bearers went from 3,187 to 2,712 (-14.9% change). The surname moved down 1,055 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,107 to #11,162.
FAQ
Darlington surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Darlington?
Name Census estimates that about 3,110 living Americans carry the surname Darlington. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 110,210 residents.
How common is Darlington?
Darlington ranks #11,162 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.91 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 2,712 people with the surname Darlington. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,110), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.91 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.91 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 Darlington.
Has Darlington become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Darlington went from 3,187 recorded bearers to 2,712. That is a decrease of 475 (-14.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,107 to #11,162.
What does the Census say about the background of Darlington?
Among Census respondents with the surname Darlington, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.0%) and Hispanic (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 Darlington in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.6% (2,132 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Darlington appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.6%), Black (14.0%), Hispanic (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 Darlington (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 Darlington mean?
A locational surname derived from the market town of Darlington in County Durham, England. 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 Darlington (0.91 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 Darlington?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.