2000
#5,561
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,735
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.13
Rare Last name
Fielding
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near or worked in a field or pasture.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,781 Americans carry the last name Fielding. That puts it at #5,651 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 50,546 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fielding 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 Fielding with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.8K
1 in 50,546
Census rank
#5,651
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,913 bearers of the surname Fielding in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5651st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fielding, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fielding
The surname Fielding originated in England during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old English word "feld," meaning a field or open area of land. The name was likely first adopted as a descriptive surname for someone who lived near or worked on a field.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Fielding can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a record of landowners and tenants in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears as "de Felding," indicating that some individuals were already using a locational surname based on their place of residence or land ownership.
Throughout the medieval period, the surname Fielding evolved into various spellings, including Feilding, Feylding, and Feyldyng. These variations reflect the inconsistencies in spelling and record-keeping at the time. The name was particularly prevalent in the counties of Warwickshire, Staffordshire, and Derbyshire.
One notable figure with the surname Fielding was Raphael Holinshed (c. 1529-1580), an English chronicler and historian best known for his work "Holinshed's Chronicles," which was a major source for William Shakespeare's plays. The Fielding family also produced several notable writers, including Henry Fielding (1707-1754), the author of the novel "The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling," and his sister, Sarah Fielding (1710-1768), a novelist and playwright.
Another prominent individual with this surname was William Fielding (1587-1677), who served as the Earl of Denbigh and was a prominent military commander during the English Civil War. He played a significant role in the Parliamentarian cause and was known for his bravery in battle.
In the 18th century, the Fielding family established themselves as a prominent noble family in England. Basil Fielding, 2nd Earl of Denbigh (1665-1719), was a notable figure in this era, serving as a member of the Privy Council and holding various political and military positions.
The surname Fielding has also been associated with place names in England, such as Fielding, a village in Bedfordshire, and Fielding, a hamlet in Warwickshire. These locations likely derived their names from the surname or vice versa, reflecting the close connection between surnames and geographic locations in England's history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fielding
Among Census respondents with the surname Fielding, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Fielding 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 Fielding surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.9% · 4,959
- Black or African American7.2% · 424
- Two or more races3.7% · 217
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 213
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 59
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 41
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fielding
Fielding 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
#5,700
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,081
+346 bearers (+6.0%)
Per 100,000 2.06
Rank movement Down 139 places
2020
#5,651
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,913
-168 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 1.98
Rank movement Up 49 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,561 | 5,735 | 2.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,700 | 6,081 | 2.06 | +346 bearers (+6.0%) | Down 139 places |
| 2020 | #5,651 | 5,913 | 1.98 | -168 bearers (-2.8%) | Up 49 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 Fielding 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 | #5,700 | #5,651 | 0.9% |
| Count | 6,081 | 5,913 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 2.06 | 1.98 | -4.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fielding bearers went from 6,081 to 5,913 (-2.8% change). The surname moved up 49 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,700 to #5,651.
FAQ
Fielding surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fielding?
Name Census estimates that about 6,781 living Americans carry the surname Fielding. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 50,546 residents.
How common is Fielding?
Fielding ranks #5,651 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.98 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 5,913 people with the surname Fielding. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,781), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.98 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 Fielding.
Has Fielding become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fielding went from 6,081 recorded bearers to 5,913. That is a decrease of 168 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,700 to #5,651.
What does the Census say about the background of Fielding?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fielding, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) 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 Fielding in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.9% (4,959 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fielding appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.9%), Black (7.2%), 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 Fielding (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 Fielding mean?
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near or worked in a field or pasture. 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 Fielding (1.98 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 Fielding?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.