2000
#4,230
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,759
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.88
Rare Last name
Ethridge
Derived from a place name meaning "Ecga's ridge," referring to a ridge or high ground owned by someone named Ecga.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,466 Americans carry the last name Ethridge. That puts it at #4,655 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.47 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 40,486 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ethridge 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 Ethridge with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.5K
1 in 40,486
Census rank
#4,655
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,383 bearers of the surname Ethridge in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.47 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4655th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ethridge, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.0%. The next largest groups are Black (13.9%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ethridge
The surname Ethridge is of English origin, with its earliest known roots dating back to the 12th century in the counties of Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire. The name is derived from the Old English words 'ed' meaning 'fortune' or 'prosperous' and 'hrycg' meaning 'ridge' or 'hill', suggesting that the name initially referred to someone who lived on a prosperous or fortunate ridge.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1230, which mentions a Richard de Edrigg. The surname also appears in various medieval records, such as the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where a John de Edrugge is listed as a landowner in Oxfordshire.
The name has undergone several spelling variations over the centuries, including Edridge, Edrudge, Etheridge, and Ethridge. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and the inconsistent nature of spelling and record-keeping in earlier times.
Notable individuals bearing the Ethridge surname include William Ethridge (1568-1635), an English merchant and member of the Virginia Company, who played a significant role in the early colonization efforts of Virginia. Another notable figure was Sir John Ethridge (1616-1688), an English lawyer and Royalist who served as Chief Justice of the King's Bench during the reign of Charles II.
In the 18th century, John Ethridge (1720-1799) was a prominent Anglican clergyman and author, known for his work "The Doctrine of the Operations of Grace." Thomas Ethridge (1782-1844) was a British naval officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars and later became a Member of Parliament.
During the 19th century, Francis Ethridge (1819-1901) was an American politician and lawyer who served as a United States Representative from Tennessee. He was also a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.
While the Ethridge surname has its roots in England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, particularly through British colonial expansion and migration. However, the earliest recorded instances and historical references remain closely tied to the name's English origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ethridge
Among Census respondents with the surname Ethridge, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.0%. The next largest groups are Black (13.9%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Ethridge 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 Ethridge surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.0% · 5,683
- Black or African American13.9% · 1,024
- Two or more races4.0% · 298
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 271
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 57
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 50
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ethridge
Ethridge 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
#4,502
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,878
+119 bearers (+1.5%)
Per 100,000 2.67
Rank movement Down 272 places
2020
#4,655
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,383
-495 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 2.47
Rank movement Down 153 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,230 | 7,759 | 2.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,502 | 7,878 | 2.67 | +119 bearers (+1.5%) | Down 272 places |
| 2020 | #4,655 | 7,383 | 2.47 | -495 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 153 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 Ethridge 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 | #4,502 | #4,655 | -3.4% |
| Count | 7,878 | 7,383 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.67 | 2.47 | -7.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ethridge bearers went from 7,878 to 7,383 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 153 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,502 to #4,655.
FAQ
Ethridge surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ethridge?
Name Census estimates that about 8,466 living Americans carry the surname Ethridge. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 40,486 residents.
How common is Ethridge?
Ethridge ranks #4,655 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.47 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 7,383 people with the surname Ethridge. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,466), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.47 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.47 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 Ethridge.
Has Ethridge become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ethridge went from 7,878 recorded bearers to 7,383. That is a decrease of 495 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,502 to #4,655.
What does the Census say about the background of Ethridge?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ethridge, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.0%. The next largest groups are Black (13.9%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Ethridge in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.0% (5,683 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ethridge appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.0%), Black (13.9%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Ethridge (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 Ethridge mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "Ecga's ridge," referring to a ridge or high ground owned by someone named Ecga. 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 Ethridge (2.47 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 share the surname Ethridge?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.