2000
#40,019
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 516
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.19
Very Rare Last name
Fishburne
A surname referring to someone living near a place with abundant fish or streams.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 646 Americans carry the last name Fishburne. That puts it at #41,648 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 530,579 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fishburne 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
646
1 in 530,579
Census rank
#41,648
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
563
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 563 bearers of the surname Fishburne in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 41648th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fishburne, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Black (41.0%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fishburne
The surname Fishburne has its origins in England, emerging in the late medieval period around the 13th or 14th century. It is a locational name, derived from a place name that likely referred to a stream or body of water where fish were found. The name may have originated from the Old English words "fisc" (fish) and "burna" (stream), indicating a settlement or area near a fish-bearing stream.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Fishburne can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, where it appears as "Fysshebyrne." This spelling variation highlights the evolution of the name over time and the influence of regional dialects on its pronunciation and written form.
The Fishburne surname has a strong connection to the county of Yorkshire in northern England. Records from the 16th and 17th centuries show several Fishburne families residing in various parishes within Yorkshire, such as Knaresborough and Kirkby Malzeard.
A notable historical figure bearing the Fishburne name was William Fishburne, a wealthy merchant and landowner who lived in the late 16th century. He owned extensive properties in Yorkshire and left a substantial inheritance to his heirs upon his death in 1597.
Another prominent individual with the Fishburne surname was Thomas Fishburne, born in 1674 in Ripon, Yorkshire. He was a respected clergyman who served as the Rector of Waddington from 1709 until his death in 1742.
In the 18th century, the Fishburne family had a presence in the city of London, where John Fishburne, born in 1712, was a successful merchant and member of the prestigious Worshipful Company of Skinners.
During the 19th century, the Fishburne name spread to other parts of England, with families residing in counties such as Lancashire and Derbyshire. One notable figure from this era was Robert Fishburne, born in 1821 in Ecclesfield, Yorkshire. He was a renowned architect and designed several notable buildings, including churches and public structures.
The Fishburne surname has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Fishburn in County Durham and Fisherburn in Yorkshire. These place names likely share a similar etymological origin as the surname, reflecting the presence of fish-bearing streams or bodies of water.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fishburne
Among Census respondents with the surname Fishburne, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Black (41.0%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Fishburne 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 Fishburne surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White51.7% · 291
- Black or African American41.0% · 231
- Two or more races4.3% · 24
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 11
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fishburne
Fishburne 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
#38,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 574
+58 bearers (+11.2%)
Per 100,000 0.19
Rank movement Up 1,487 places
2020
#41,648
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 563
-11 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.19
Rank movement Down 3,116 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #40,019 | 516 | 0.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #38,532 | 574 | 0.19 | +58 bearers (+11.2%) | Up 1,487 places |
| 2020 | #41,648 | 563 | 0.19 | -11 bearers (-1.9%) | Down 3,116 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 Fishburne 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 | #38,532 | #41,648 | -8.1% |
| Count | 574 | 563 | -1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.19 | 0.19 | -0.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fishburne bearers went from 574 to 563 (-1.9% change). The surname moved down 3,116 positions in the national ranking, going from #38,532 to #41,648.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Fishburne
FAQ
Fishburne surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fishburne?
Name Census estimates that about 646 living Americans carry the surname Fishburne. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 530,579 residents.
How common is Fishburne?
Fishburne ranks #41,648 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.19 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 563 people with the surname Fishburne. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (646), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.19 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 Fishburne.
Has Fishburne become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fishburne went from 574 recorded bearers to 563. That is a decrease of 11 (-1.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #38,532 to #41,648.
What does the Census say about the background of Fishburne?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fishburne, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Black (41.0%) and Two or More Races (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 Fishburne in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.7% (291 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fishburne appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (51.7%), Black (41.0%), Two or More Races (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 Fishburne (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 Fishburne mean?
A surname referring to someone living near a place with abundant fish or streams. 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 Fishburne (0.19 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 Fishburne?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.