2000
#12,064
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,373
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Fentress
An English occupational surname for a maker or seller of venters, a type of parchment or animal hide.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,434 Americans carry the last name Fentress. That puts it at #13,668 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 140,819 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fentress 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
2.4K
1 in 140,819
Census rank
#13,668
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,123 bearers of the surname Fentress in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13668th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fentress, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.4%. The next largest groups are Black (31.9%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fentress
The surname Fentress has its origins in England, tracing back to the early Middle Ages. It is believed to be a locational name, derived from the Old English words "fen" meaning marsh or boggy area, and "trisc" meaning a thicket or brushwood. This suggests that the name originally referred to someone who lived near a marshy, brushy area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled as "Fentriz." This suggests that the surname was already established in parts of England by the late 11th century.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as "Fentriche" and "Fentrice," reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling during that era. The earliest known bearer of the name was Roger de Fentris, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1195.
Over the centuries, the name has been associated with various locations in England, particularly in the counties of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire. The village of Fentridge in Oxfordshire may have contributed to the development of the surname.
Notable historical figures with the surname Fentress include Sir John Fentress (1516-1587), who was a member of the English Parliament and served as a justice of the peace in Oxfordshire. Another prominent individual was Thomas Fentress (1701-1768), an English clergyman and author who wrote several theological works.
In the Americas, one of the earliest recorded instances of the surname was William Fentress, who arrived in Virginia in 1638. His descendants went on to establish themselves in various parts of the United States, including Tennessee and Arkansas.
Other notable bearers of the Fentress surname throughout history include James Fentress (1763-1843), an American politician and judge who served as the second Governor of Arkansas; and Walter Fentress (1871-1952), an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Fentress County Bank in Tennessee.
Overall, the surname Fentress has a rich history that spans several centuries and can be traced back to its Old English roots, reflecting the importance of locational names in the development of English surnames.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fentress
Among Census respondents with the surname Fentress, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.4%. The next largest groups are Black (31.9%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Fentress 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 Fentress surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White60.4% · 1,282
- Black or African American31.9% · 677
- Two or more races4.0% · 84
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 59
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 12
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fentress
Fentress 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
#12,694
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,432
+59 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 630 places
2020
#13,668
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,123
-309 bearers (-12.7%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 974 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,064 | 2,373 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,694 | 2,432 | 0.82 | +59 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 630 places |
| 2020 | #13,668 | 2,123 | 0.71 | -309 bearers (-12.7%) | Down 974 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 Fentress 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 | #12,694 | #13,668 | -7.7% |
| Count | 2,432 | 2,123 | -12.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.82 | 0.71 | -13.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fentress bearers went from 2,432 to 2,123 (-12.7% change). The surname moved down 974 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,694 to #13,668.
FAQ
Fentress surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fentress?
Name Census estimates that about 2,434 living Americans carry the surname Fentress. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 140,819 residents.
How common is Fentress?
Fentress ranks #13,668 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,123 people with the surname Fentress. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,434), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Fentress.
Has Fentress become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fentress went from 2,432 recorded bearers to 2,123. That is a decrease of 309 (-12.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,694 to #13,668.
What does the Census say about the background of Fentress?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fentress, the largest self-reported group is White at 60.4%. The next largest groups are Black (31.9%) 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 Fentress in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.4% (1,282 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fentress appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (60.4%), Black (31.9%), 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 Fentress (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 Fentress mean?
An English occupational surname for a maker or seller of venters, a type of parchment or animal hide. 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 Fentress (0.71 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 Fentress?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.