2000
#11,837
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,424
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.90
Rare Last name
Fleet
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a creek, stream, or body of water.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,678 Americans carry the last name Fleet. That puts it at #12,627 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 127,989 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fleet 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 Fleet with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 127,989
Census rank
#12,627
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,335 bearers of the surname Fleet in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12627th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fleet, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.3%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fleet
The surname Fleet has its origins in England, with records tracing it back to the 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English word "fleot," which means "creek" or "inlet." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near a creek or inlet.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Fleet can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1176, where a person named William de Flet is mentioned. The "de" prefix in this spelling indicates that the name was likely locational, referring to someone from a place called Flet.
In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various forms, such as Flete, Flet, and Fleete, reflecting the variations in spelling and pronunciation at the time. One notable bearer of the name was Sir Walter de Flete, who served as a judge and was appointed Lord Treasurer of England in 1272 during the reign of Edward I.
The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and tenants in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not appear to contain any direct references to the surname Fleet. However, it does mention several place names that may have contributed to the formation of the surname, such as Fleet in Lincolnshire and Fleet Marston in Buckinghamshire.
Over the centuries, the surname Fleet has been associated with various notable individuals. John Fleet (1579-1615) was an English playwright and satirist known for his works criticizing the corruption of the Church and society. Sir John Fleet (1610-1688) was a prominent English lawyer and judge who served as a Baron of the Exchequer during the reign of Charles II.
In the 18th century, Thomas Fleet (1685-1758) was a notable American printer and publisher who established the first printing press in Boston. His son, Thomas Fleet Jr. (1732-1808), continued the family business and became a prominent bookseller and publisher in his own right.
Another notable bearer of the surname was Sir Frederick Fleet (1841-1900), a British orientalist and epigraphist who made significant contributions to the study of ancient Indian inscriptions and languages. He served as the Principal of Deccan College in Pune, India, and was instrumental in establishing the field of Indology.
Throughout its history, the surname Fleet has been prevalent in various parts of England, particularly in counties such as Lincolnshire, Buckinghamshire, and Dorset, where many of the early records and place names associated with the surname can be found. Despite its English origins, the name has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fleet
Among Census respondents with the surname Fleet, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.3%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Fleet 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 Fleet surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.8% · 1,701
- Black or African American20.3% · 474
- Two or more races3.2% · 75
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 64
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 11
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fleet
Fleet 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
#11,322
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,787
+363 bearers (+15.0%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Up 515 places
2020
#12,627
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,335
-452 bearers (-16.2%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 1,305 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,837 | 2,424 | 0.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,322 | 2,787 | 0.94 | +363 bearers (+15.0%) | Up 515 places |
| 2020 | #12,627 | 2,335 | 0.78 | -452 bearers (-16.2%) | Down 1,305 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 Fleet 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 | #11,322 | #12,627 | -11.5% |
| Count | 2,787 | 2,335 | -16.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.78 | -16.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fleet bearers went from 2,787 to 2,335 (-16.2% change). The surname moved down 1,305 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,322 to #12,627.
FAQ
Fleet surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fleet?
Name Census estimates that about 2,678 living Americans carry the surname Fleet. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 127,989 residents.
How common is Fleet?
Fleet ranks #12,627 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.78 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 2,335 people with the surname Fleet. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,678), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.78 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 Fleet.
Has Fleet become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fleet went from 2,787 recorded bearers to 2,335. That is a decrease of 452 (-16.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,322 to #12,627.
What does the Census say about the background of Fleet?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fleet, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.3%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Fleet in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.8% (1,701 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fleet appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.8%), Black (20.3%), Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Fleet (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 Fleet mean?
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a creek, stream, or body of water. 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 Fleet (0.78 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 Fleet?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.