2000
#2,424
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,700
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.08
Uncommon Last name
Fairchild
A surname referring to a beautiful child, often with light-colored hair, or one who was privileged.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 15,333 Americans carry the last name Fairchild. That puts it at #2,634 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.47 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 22,354 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fairchild 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 Fairchild with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
15K
1 in 22,354
Census rank
#2,634
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
13K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 13,371 bearers of the surname Fairchild in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.47 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2634th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fairchild, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fairchild
The surname FAIRCHILD has its origins in England, where it first emerged in the 13th century. It is believed to be a habitational name, derived from the Old English words "faeger", meaning fair or beautiful, and "cild", meaning a young person or child. This suggests that the name may have originated from a place named after a fair or beautiful child, or a location associated with children.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the FAIRCHILD surname can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Huntingdonshire, dated 1273, which mentions a John Fayrechild. The name also appears in various other medieval records, such as the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1327, which lists a William Fayrechild.
The FAIRCHILD surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was John Fairchild (c. 1384-1449), an English churchman who served as Bishop of Carlisle from 1429 until his death. Another prominent figure was Thomas Fairchild (1667-1729), an English gardener and botanist who is credited with introducing several plant species to England.
In the 18th century, Benjamin FAIRCHILD (1706-1786) was a prominent American clergyman and educator, serving as the second president of Harvard College from 1770 to 1773. His grandson, James Harris FAIRCHILD (1817-1887), was a prominent American theologian and educator who served as the third president of Oberlin College.
Another notable bearer of the FAIRCHILD surname was Charles E. FAIRCHILD (1904-1999), an American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corporation, a pioneering company in the development of aerial reconnaissance cameras and semiconductor technology.
The FAIRCHILD name has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Fairchild's Farm in Kent, Fairchild's Close in Buckinghamshire, and Fairchild's Meadow in Oxfordshire. These place names further reinforce the connection between the surname and its possible origins as a habitational name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fairchild
Among Census respondents with the surname Fairchild, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Fairchild 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 Fairchild surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.4% · 11,819
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 504
- Two or more races3.7% · 495
- Black or African American2.8% · 377
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 102
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 74
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fairchild
Fairchild 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
#2,581
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,993
+293 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 4.74
Rank movement Down 157 places
2020
#2,634
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,371
-622 bearers (-4.4%)
Per 100,000 4.47
Rank movement Down 53 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,424 | 13,700 | 5.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,581 | 13,993 | 4.74 | +293 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 157 places |
| 2020 | #2,634 | 13,371 | 4.47 | -622 bearers (-4.4%) | Down 53 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 Fairchild 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 | #2,581 | #2,634 | -2.1% |
| Count | 13,993 | 13,371 | -4.4% |
| Per 100K | 4.74 | 4.47 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fairchild bearers went from 13,993 to 13,371 (-4.4% change). The surname moved down 53 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,581 to #2,634.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Fairchild
FAQ
Fairchild surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fairchild?
Name Census estimates that about 15,333 living Americans carry the surname Fairchild. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 22,354 residents.
How common is Fairchild?
Fairchild ranks #2,634 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.47 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 13,371 people with the surname Fairchild. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (15,333), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.47 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.47 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Fairchild.
Has Fairchild become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fairchild went from 13,993 recorded bearers to 13,371. That is a decrease of 622 (-4.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,581 to #2,634.
What does the Census say about the background of Fairchild?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fairchild, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Fairchild in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.4% (11,819 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fairchild appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.4%), Hispanic (3.8%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Fairchild (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 Fairchild mean?
A surname referring to a beautiful child, often with light-colored hair, or one who was privileged. 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 Fairchild (4.47 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 Americans have the surname Fairchild?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.