2010
#137,327
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Faulkerson
An English habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "Son of the Falcon."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Faulkerson. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Faulkerson 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Faulkerson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Faulkerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Faulkerson
The surname Faulkerson originates from England, first appearing in records around the 13th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "falc" meaning falcon and "hors" meaning horse, potentially referring to someone who worked with falcons and horses.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1273, which mentions a "Thomas Fauconer". This spelling variation likely evolved into the modern form of Faulkerson over time.
The name was particularly prevalent in the counties of Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, where many families bearing this surname lived and worked on estates or as falconers for noble households. Some historical records suggest the name may have also been associated with certain place names, such as Falconhurst or Fauconberg.
Notable individuals with the surname Faulkerson include Sir John Faulkerson (1568-1643), a prominent landowner and Member of Parliament from Yorkshire. Another was William Faulkerson (1621-1691), a successful merchant and alderman in the City of London.
During the 17th century, the Faulkerson family established itself in the American colonies, with records showing Thomas Faulkerson (1635-1712) as one of the earliest settlers in Virginia. His descendants later migrated westward, with several Faulkersons serving in the American Revolutionary War.
In the 19th century, James Faulkerson (1802-1876) was a respected judge and politician in Indiana, while Mary Faulkerson (1834-1912) was a pioneering educator and suffragist in Kansas. More recently, the author and playwright William Faulkerson (1897-1962) gained recognition for his works exploring themes of Southern identity and culture.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Faulkerson
Among Census respondents with the surname Faulkerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Faulkerson 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 Faulkerson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.8% · 91
- Black or African American11.1% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.3% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 4
- Two or more races3.4% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Faulkerson
Faulkerson appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-5 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,943 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #137,327 | 122 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 6,943 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 Faulkerson 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 | #137,327 | #144,270 | -5.1% |
| Count | 122 | 117 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Faulkerson bearers went from 122 to 117 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 6,943 positions in the national ranking, going from #137,327 to #144,270.
FAQ
Faulkerson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Faulkerson?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Faulkerson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Faulkerson?
Faulkerson ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 117 people with the surname Faulkerson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Faulkerson.
Has Faulkerson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Faulkerson went from 122 recorded bearers to 117. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #137,327 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Faulkerson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Faulkerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.3%). 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 Faulkerson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.8% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Faulkerson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.8%), Black (11.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.3%). 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 Faulkerson (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 Faulkerson mean?
An English habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "Son of the Falcon." 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 Faulkerson (0.04 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 have the surname Faulkerson?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.