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

Edwards, 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 Edwards surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Edwards in America

Edwards is the 58th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Edwards surname appeared 332,423 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 113 people would have the surname Edwards.

We can also compare 2010 data for Edwards 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 Edwards

The surname Edwards is of English origin and dates back to the Middle Ages, around the 13th century. It is a patronymic name, derived from the given name Edward, which itself comes from the Old English words "ead" meaning "rich" or "prosperous" and "weard" meaning "guardian" or "protector."

The name Edwards was initially used to denote "son of Edward," a common practice at the time when surnames were becoming hereditary. It first emerged in various parts of England, including the counties of Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, and Warwickshire.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Edwards can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1273, which mentions a person named John le Edewardes. Additionally, the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, includes references to places with names that may have contributed to the development of the surname, such as Edwardstone in Suffolk.

Notable individuals with the surname Edwards throughout history include:

1. Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), a prominent American theologian, philosopher, and revivalist preacher during the Great Awakening.
2. Amelia Edwards (1831-1892), an English novelist, journalist, and Egyptologist who helped establish the Egyptology department at University College London.
3. George Edwards (1694-1773), an English naturalist and ornithologist known for his influential work "A Natural History of Uncommon Birds."
4. William Edwards (1719-1789), an English botanist and author of "The Botanical Arrangement of All the Vegetables Naturally Growing in Great Britain."
5. Ninian Edwards (1775-1833), an American politician who served as the Governor of Illinois Territory and later as a U.S. Senator.

The name Edwards has also been associated with various place names, such as Edwardstone in Suffolk, mentioned earlier, and Edwardsville, a city in Illinois named after Ninian Edwards. Additionally, variations in spelling, such as Edwardes and Edwarde, were common in earlier times.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Edwards

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

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

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

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