2000
#13,019
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,159
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.80
Rare Last name
Eastham
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the places named Eastham in England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,402 Americans carry the last name Eastham. That puts it at #13,814 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 142,695 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Eastham 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 Eastham with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 142,695
Census rank
#13,814
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,095 bearers of the surname Eastham in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13814th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Eastham, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Eastham
The surname Eastham is of English origin, derived from the place name Eastham, a village located in the Wirral peninsula in Cheshire, England. The name is believed to have originated in the early Middle Ages, around the 11th or 12th century.
The name Eastham is a locational surname, meaning it was initially given to someone who lived in or came from the village of Eastham. The Old English word "east" means "east," and "ham" refers to a homestead or village, indicating that the name likely referred to a village situated to the east of a particular location.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Eastham can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions "Estre-ham" as a manor in Cheshire. This historical record suggests that the name and the village were well-established by the late 11th century.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various spellings, such as "Estham" and "Esteham," reflecting the evolution of the English language over time. During this period, the Eastham family was known to have held land and properties in the Wirral area.
Notable individuals with the surname Eastham include Sir William Eastham (c. 1520-1594), an English politician and landowner who served as the Sheriff of Cheshire in 1586. Another prominent figure was Robert Eastham (1615-1690), an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works.
In the 18th century, John Eastham (1738-1813) was a notable English engraver and artist known for his landscape paintings and etchings. Edward Eastham (1755-1828) was a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars.
More recently, James Eastham (1924-2010) was a British actor and playwright who appeared in numerous television shows and films throughout his career. He is best known for his roles in popular series like Doctor Who and Fawlty Towers.
While the surname Eastham is not among the most common in England, it has a long and rich history, deeply rooted in the ancient village from which it originated. The name has been carried by individuals of note across various fields, including politics, religion, art, and entertainment, spanning several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Eastham
Among Census respondents with the surname Eastham, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Eastham 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 Eastham surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.2% · 1,869
- Two or more races5.2% · 109
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 71
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 16
- Black or African American0.5% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Eastham
Eastham 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
#13,456
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,263
+104 bearers (+4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 437 places
2020
#13,814
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,095
-168 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Down 358 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,019 | 2,159 | 0.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,456 | 2,263 | 0.77 | +104 bearers (+4.8%) | Down 437 places |
| 2020 | #13,814 | 2,095 | 0.70 | -168 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 358 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 Eastham 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 | #13,456 | #13,814 | -2.7% |
| Count | 2,263 | 2,095 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.77 | 0.70 | -9.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Eastham bearers went from 2,263 to 2,095 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 358 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,456 to #13,814.
FAQ
Eastham surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Eastham?
Name Census estimates that about 2,402 living Americans carry the surname Eastham. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 142,695 residents.
How common is Eastham?
Eastham ranks #13,814 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.70 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 2,095 people with the surname Eastham. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,402), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.70 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 Eastham.
Has Eastham become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Eastham went from 2,263 recorded bearers to 2,095. That is a decrease of 168 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,456 to #13,814.
What does the Census say about the background of Eastham?
Among Census respondents with the surname Eastham, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Eastham in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.2% (1,869 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Eastham appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.2%), Two or More Races (5.2%), Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Eastham (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 Eastham mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the places named Eastham in 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 Eastham (0.70 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 are called Eastham?
See how many Americans have the surname Eastham on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.