2000
#4,669
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,944
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.57
Rare Last name
Drayton
From an English place name meaning "dry town," referring to a location with well-drained soil.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,431 Americans carry the last name Drayton. That puts it at #4,680 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.46 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 40,654 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Drayton 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 Drayton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.4K
1 in 40,654
Census rank
#4,680
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,352 bearers of the surname Drayton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.46 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4680th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Drayton, the largest self-reported group is Black at 75.0%. The next largest groups are White (14.9%) and Two or More Races (5.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Drayton
The surname Drayton originates from England, with records dating back to the 11th century. It is a locational name, derived from the place name "Drayton," which means "dry or parched town" in Old English. The name is found in various counties across England, including Staffordshire, Shropshire, and Oxfordshire.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Drayton is in the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions several landowners with this surname. The Domesday Book was a comprehensive survey of landowners and estates in England, commissioned by William the Conqueror.
In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various records, such as the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire and the Pipe Rolls of Shropshire. The earliest recorded spelling of the name was "de Draitone," which later evolved into the modern spelling of "Drayton."
Notable individuals with the surname Drayton include Michael Drayton (1563-1631), an English poet and playwright, known for his works "Poly-Olbion" and "The Barons' Wars." He is considered one of the most significant poets of the Elizabethan era.
Another prominent figure was William Drayton (1733-1790), a prominent American planter, lawyer, and politician from South Carolina. He was a member of the Continental Congress and a signatory of the Articles of Confederation.
In the 16th century, the surname Drayton was associated with several place names, such as Drayton Bassett in Staffordshire, Drayton Beauchamp in Buckinghamshire, and Drayton Parslow in Buckinghamshire.
Other notable individuals with the surname Drayton include:
1. Henry Drayton (c. 1564-1644), an English clergyman and author.
2. John Drayton (1766-1822), an American politician and judge from South Carolina.
3. Percival Drayton (1812-1865), an American naval officer who served in the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War.
4. Thomas Drayton (c. 1618-1692), an English-born landowner and politician in Virginia.
5. William Henry Drayton (1742-1779), an American politician and jurist from South Carolina, known for his role in the American Revolutionary War.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Drayton
Among Census respondents with the surname Drayton, the largest self-reported group is Black at 75.0%. The next largest groups are White (14.9%) and Two or More Races (5.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Drayton 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 Drayton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American75.0% · 5,517
- White14.9% · 1,099
- Two or more races5.5% · 406
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 277
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 30
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 23
Timeline
Historical Census data for Drayton
Drayton 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
#4,640
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,648
+704 bearers (+10.1%)
Per 100,000 2.59
Rank movement Up 29 places
2020
#4,680
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,352
-296 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 2.46
Rank movement Down 40 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,669 | 6,944 | 2.57 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,640 | 7,648 | 2.59 | +704 bearers (+10.1%) | Up 29 places |
| 2020 | #4,680 | 7,352 | 2.46 | -296 bearers (-3.9%) | Down 40 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 Drayton 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 | #4,640 | #4,680 | -0.9% |
| Count | 7,648 | 7,352 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 2.59 | 2.46 | -5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Drayton bearers went from 7,648 to 7,352 (-3.9% change). The surname moved down 40 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,640 to #4,680.
FAQ
Drayton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Drayton?
Name Census estimates that about 8,431 living Americans carry the surname Drayton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 40,654 residents.
How common is Drayton?
Drayton ranks #4,680 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.46 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,352 people with the surname Drayton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,431), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.46 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.46 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Drayton.
Has Drayton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Drayton went from 7,648 recorded bearers to 7,352. That is a decrease of 296 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,640 to #4,680.
What does the Census say about the background of Drayton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Drayton, the largest self-reported group is Black at 75.0%. The next largest groups are White (14.9%) and Two or More Races (5.5%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Drayton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.0% (5,517 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Drayton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (75.0%), White (14.9%), Two or More Races (5.5%). 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 Drayton (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 Drayton mean?
From an English place name meaning "dry town," referring to a location with well-drained soil. 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 Drayton (2.46 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 last name Drayton?
If you just want to know how many people are called Drayton, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.