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

Devonshire, 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 Devonshire surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Devonshire in America

Devonshire is the 39717th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Devonshire surname appeared 553 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Devonshire.

We can also compare 2010 data for Devonshire 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 Devonshire

The surname Devonshire is a locational name that originated in England, specifically in the county of Devon. It first emerged in the late 11th century, shortly after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. The name is derived from the Old English words "Defe-na-scir," which translates to "the people living in the region of the Defena or River Dane."

The earliest recorded use of the name Devonshire is found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and their estates commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears as "Deuenescire" in this historic document, referring to the county of Devon.

Over time, the spelling of the name evolved, with variations such as Devonshyre, Devonshyre, and Devonshaire appearing in various historical records. One of the earliest recorded instances of the modern spelling "Devonshire" dates back to the late 13th century, found in the Hundred Rolls, a census-like survey of landholdings in England conducted between 1274 and 1279.

Noteworthy individuals bearing the surname Devonshire throughout history include Sir William Devonshire (c. 1495-1549), an English landowner and Member of Parliament during the reign of Henry VIII. Another notable figure was Sir Christopher Devonshire (1560-1629), a prominent merchant and philanthropist who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1621.

In the 18th century, William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire (1720-1764), was a prominent statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain for a brief period in 1756-1757. His wife, Lady Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (1757-1806), was a renowned socialite and political activist.

In the literary world, the name Devonshire is associated with Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (1757-1806), who was immortalized in the novel "Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire" by Amanda Foreman, published in 1998.

The surname Devonshire has also been carried by notable individuals in more recent times, such as Sir Andrew Devonshire (1879-1958), a British diplomat and civil servant who served as Governor of Kenya Colony from 1923 to 1928, and Sir Eric Devonshire (1891-1975), a British lawyer and judge who served as Lord Justice of Appeal from 1951 to 1958.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Devonshire

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!