Ellsworth last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Ellsworth

From an English place name meaning "Elli's enclosure," derived from the Old English personal name "Elli" and "worth" (enclosure).

Ellsworth, 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 Ellsworth surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ellsworth in America

Ellsworth is the 2611th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ellsworth surname appeared 13,813 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Ellsworth.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ellsworth 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 2611 2506 4.10%
Count 13,813 13,213 4.44%
Proportion per 100k 4.68 4.90 -4.59%

The history of the last name Ellsworth

The surname Ellsworth is of English origin, derived from a place name meaning "Ella's worth" or "Ella's farm." It dates back to the Anglo-Saxon era, around the 5th to 11th centuries. The name originated in various parts of England, including Norfolk, Gloucestershire, and Yorkshire.

One of the earliest known records of the name Ellsworth can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landholdings in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears spelled as "Elleswurthe" and is associated with landowners in Norfolk and Gloucestershire.

In the 13th century, the name Ellsworth was recorded in various forms, such as "Ellesworth," "Elsworth," and "Elleswurthe." These variations reflect the evolution of the English language and local dialects over time.

Notable individuals with the surname Ellsworth throughout history include:

  1. Oliver Ellsworth (1745-1807), an American lawyer, politician, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He served as the third Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.

  2. Henry Leavitt Ellsworth (1791-1858), an American lawyer, politician, and the first Commissioner of the U.S. Patent Office, serving from 1835 to 1845.

  3. Elmer Ellsworth (1837-1861), a Union officer and the first officer to be killed in the American Civil War. He was also a friend of President Abraham Lincoln.

  4. Lincoln Ellsworth (1880-1951), an American explorer, aviator, and polar scientist. He was the first person to fly across the Antarctic continent in 1935.

  5. Robert Ellsworth (1923-2021), an American diplomat and art collector, known for his extensive collection of Asian art, particularly Chinese sculptures and ceramics.

The name Ellsworth has also been associated with various place names in the United States, such as Ellsworth, Maine, and Ellsworth County in Kansas, likely named after early settlers with the surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ellsworth

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

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 Ellsworth was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 90.81% 12,544
Non-Hispanic Black Only 3.33% 460
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.75% 104
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 1.12% 155
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.56% 215
Hispanic Origin 2.43% 336

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 Ellsworth has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 90.81% 92.29% -1.62%
Black 3.33% 2.88% 14.49%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.75% 0.57% 27.27%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 1.12% 1.02% 9.35%
Two or More Races 1.56% 1.22% 24.46%
Hispanic 2.43% 2.03% 17.94%

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

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

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"Ellsworth last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on July 27, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/ellsworth-surname-popularity/.

"Ellsworth last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/ellsworth-surname-popularity/. Accessed 27 July, 2024

Ellsworth last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/ellsworth-surname-popularity/.

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