2000
#6,653
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,685
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.74
Rare Last name
Egbert
An English surname derived from the Old German name Ecgbeorht, meaning "bright edge" (of a sword).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,828 Americans carry the last name Egbert. That puts it at #6,431 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 58,812 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Egbert 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.
Bearers in the US
5.8K
1 in 58,812
Census rank
#6,431
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,082 bearers of the surname Egbert in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6431st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Egbert, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Egbert
The surname Egbert originated in England in the Anglo-Saxon period, deriving from the Old English words "eke" meaning "prosperous" or "ever" and "beorht" meaning "bright" or "illustrious". It was an Old English given name that later became a hereditary surname.
The earliest recorded bearer of the name Egbert was King Egbert of Wessex, who reigned from 802 to 839 CE. He is credited with being the first monarch to establish a permanent Anglo-Saxon kingdom that covered most of England.
During the Middle Ages, the name Egbert appeared in various records, including the Domesday Book of 1086, which documented landowners in England after the Norman Conquest. The name was also recorded in the Pipe Rolls of 1166, which listed taxpayers from various counties.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Egbert was Roger Egbert, who was recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Leicestershire in 1195. Another early bearer was Geoffrey Egbert, mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1221.
In the 13th century, the name Egbert was found in various locations across England, including the villages of Egbertesfeld (now Eggbuckland) in Devon and Egberteston (now Eggerton) in Cheshire. These place names suggest the presence of Egbert families in those areas.
Notable individuals with the surname Egbert throughout history include:
1. Sir Ralph Egerton, 1st Baronet (1565-1629), an English landowner and Member of Parliament.
2. John Egbert (c. 1582-1615), an English Catholic priest and martyr who was executed during the reign of King James I.
3. Henry Egbert (1639-1700), a Dutch-English merchant and landowner in New York.
4. Samuel Egerton Brydges (1762-1837), an English author, genealogist, and bibliographer.
5. Henry Egbert Benson (1835-1891), an American politician who served as Governor of Oregon from 1877 to 1878.
The surname Egbert continues to be found in various parts of the world, particularly in England, the United States, and other English-speaking countries, reflecting its Anglo-Saxon origins and the spread of English culture and language over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Egbert
Among Census respondents with the surname Egbert, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Egbert 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 Egbert surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 4,667
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 178
- Two or more races2.7% · 137
- Black or African American0.8% · 42
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 37
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Egbert
Egbert 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
#6,651
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,089
+404 bearers (+8.6%)
Per 100,000 1.73
Rank movement Up 2 places
2020
#6,431
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,082
-7 bearers (-0.1%)
Per 100,000 1.70
Rank movement Up 220 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,653 | 4,685 | 1.74 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,651 | 5,089 | 1.73 | +404 bearers (+8.6%) | Up 2 places |
| 2020 | #6,431 | 5,082 | 1.70 | -7 bearers (-0.1%) | Up 220 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 Egbert 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 | #6,651 | #6,431 | 3.3% |
| Count | 5,089 | 5,082 | -0.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.73 | 1.70 | -1.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Egbert bearers went from 5,089 to 5,082 (-0.1% change). The surname moved up 220 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,651 to #6,431.
FAQ
Egbert surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Egbert?
Name Census estimates that about 5,828 living Americans carry the surname Egbert. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 58,812 residents.
How common is Egbert?
Egbert ranks #6,431 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.70 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 5,082 people with the surname Egbert. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,828), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.70 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 Egbert.
Has Egbert become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Egbert went from 5,089 recorded bearers to 5,082. That is a decrease of 7 (-0.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,651 to #6,431.
What does the Census say about the background of Egbert?
Among Census respondents with the surname Egbert, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Egbert in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (4,667 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Egbert appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Egbert (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 Egbert mean?
An English surname derived from the Old German name Ecgbeorht, meaning "bright edge" (of a sword). 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 Egbert (1.70 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 Egbert?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Egbert on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.