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

Edmonston, 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 Edmonston surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Edmonston in America

Edmonston is the 31360th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Edmonston surname appeared 739 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 Edmonston.

We can also compare 2010 data for Edmonston 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 Edmonston

The surname Edmonston originated from Scotland, specifically from the Lowlands region, around the 13th century. It is derived from the Old English words "Eadmund" and "tun," meaning "prosperous protector" and "farm" or "settlement," respectively. The name likely referred to someone who lived in a settlement owned or governed by a person named Edmund or a variation thereof.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Edmonston can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented Scottish landowners who swore fealty to Edward I of England. This suggests that the Edmonston family held lands in Scotland during that time period.

In the 16th century, the Edmonstons were recognized as a prominent family in the Borders region of Scotland. They held lands in the area of Kelso and Jedburgh, and their name appeared in various legal documents and charters from that era.

A notable figure with the surname Edmonston was Sir Archibald Edmonston, a Scottish politician and landowner who lived from 1795 to 1871. He served as a Member of Parliament for Greenock from 1837 to 1857 and played an active role in promoting trade and commerce in the region.

Another prominent individual was Thomas Edmonston, a Scottish naturalist and writer born in 1825. He conducted extensive research on the flora and fauna of the Shetland Islands and authored several books, including "A Flora of Shetland" and "The Etymological Glossary of Shetland and Orkney Dialect."

In the 18th century, the Edmonston family established themselves in the West Indies, particularly in Jamaica. John Edmonston, born in 1793, was a successful plantation owner and merchant in Jamaica, contributing to the family's wealth and influence in the region.

The Edmonstons were also well-established in the United States, with some of the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 17th century. One notable figure was Robert Edmonston, born in 1810, who served as a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Throughout history, the surname Edmonston has been associated with different variations in spelling, including Edmiston, Edmondston, and Edmunston, reflecting the regional dialects and linguistic influences of the areas where the family resided.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Edmonston

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

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

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

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