2000
#3,382
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,671
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.59
Uncommon Last name
Handley
From a place name meaning "high wood" or "wooded slope" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,502 Americans carry the last name Handley. That puts it at #3,777 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 32,637 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Handley 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 Handley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 32,637
Census rank
#3,777
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.2K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,158 bearers of the surname Handley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3777th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Handley, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.0%. The next largest groups are Black (10.4%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Handley
The surname Handley originated in England and derives from the Old English words "hond" meaning hand and "leah" meaning a meadow or clearing. It is thought to have been an occupational name given to a glove maker or someone who worked with their hands in a meadow or field.
The name can be traced back to the 12th century in Yorkshire and Lancashire. The earliest recorded instance of the name is found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1166, where it is spelled Handelay. Other early spellings include Handeley, Hanndeley, and Haundelay.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are references to places with similar names such as Handeleia in Nottinghamshire and Handelou in Dorset, which may have been the origins of some Handley families.
Notable Handleys throughout history include John Handley (1531-1594), a wealthy merchant and benefactor who founded Handley School in Wigan, Lancashire. William Handley (1686-1754) was an English clergyman and author of several religious works.
Sir Henry Handley (1819-1892) was a British MP and Lord Mayor of Manchester. He was involved in the construction of the Manchester Ship Canal. Elizabeth Handley (1766-1848) was a British Quaker minister and diarist who wrote about her travels and religious experiences.
Arthur Handley (1905-1979) was a British aircraft designer and pioneer in the development of jet engines. He worked for the Handley Page Aircraft Company, which was founded by his cousin Frederick Handley Page (1885-1962), a renowned aircraft designer and manufacturer.
The Handley surname has been well-represented in various fields throughout its long history in England and parts of the United Kingdom.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Handley
Among Census respondents with the surname Handley, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.0%. The next largest groups are Black (10.4%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Handley 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 Handley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.0% · 7,417
- Black or African American10.4% · 950
- Two or more races3.7% · 336
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 335
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 64
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 56
Timeline
Historical Census data for Handley
Handley 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
#3,657
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,722
+51 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 3.30
Rank movement Down 275 places
2020
#3,777
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,158
-564 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 3.06
Rank movement Down 120 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,382 | 9,671 | 3.59 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,657 | 9,722 | 3.30 | +51 bearers (+0.5%) | Down 275 places |
| 2020 | #3,777 | 9,158 | 3.06 | -564 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 120 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 Handley 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 | #3,657 | #3,777 | -3.3% |
| Count | 9,722 | 9,158 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 3.30 | 3.06 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Handley bearers went from 9,722 to 9,158 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 120 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,657 to #3,777.
FAQ
Handley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Handley?
Name Census estimates that about 10,502 living Americans carry the surname Handley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 32,637 residents.
How common is Handley?
Handley ranks #3,777 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,158 people with the surname Handley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,502), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Handley.
Has Handley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Handley went from 9,722 recorded bearers to 9,158. That is a decrease of 564 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,657 to #3,777.
What does the Census say about the background of Handley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Handley, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.0%. The next largest groups are Black (10.4%) 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 Handley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.0% (7,417 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Handley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.0%), Black (10.4%), 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 Handley (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 Handley mean?
From a place name meaning "high wood" or "wooded slope" in Old English. 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 Handley (3.06 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 common is the surname Handley?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Handley on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.