2000
#5,965
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,314
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.97
Rare Last name
Hawkes
An English occupational surname referring to a person who trained hawks used for hunting.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,309 Americans carry the last name Hawkes. That puts it at #6,013 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 54,328 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hawkes 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 Hawkes with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.3K
1 in 54,328
Census rank
#6,013
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,502 bearers of the surname Hawkes in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6013th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hawkes, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Hispanic (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hawkes
The surname Hawkes originated in England, with records dating back to the late 11th century. It is derived from the Old English word 'hafoc,' meaning 'hawk,' and was likely initially used as an occupational name for someone who bred or handled hawks for hunting. The earliest known spelling variations include Hauck, Hauker, and Haukere.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where a person named William Haueker is listed as a landowner in Norfolk. In the 13th century, the name appeared in various medieval records, including the Curia Regis Rolls of Hertfordshire in 1221, which mention a William le Hauker.
Notable individuals with the surname Hawkes throughout history include Sir John Hawkes (c. 1532-1595), an English military commander who served under Queen Elizabeth I during the Anglo-Spanish War. Another prominent figure was Thomas Hawkes (1616-1675), a Puritan minister and one of the founders of the town of Dorchester, Massachusetts.
In the 18th century, Benjamin Hawkes (1754-1816) was a British inventor and engineer who is credited with designing the first modern-day grasshopper escapement for clocks. Edward Hawkes (1789-1882), an English clergyman and author, published several works on theology and church history.
During the 19th century, John Hawkes (1801-1873) was a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Royal Albert Hall. Francis Lister Hawkes (1848-1908) was a renowned English archaeologist and pioneering field researcher in the early study of British prehistory.
The surname Hawkes has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Hawkesbury in Gloucestershire and Hawksworth in West Yorkshire, further reflecting its early origins and widespread distribution across the country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hawkes
Among Census respondents with the surname Hawkes, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Hispanic (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Hawkes 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 Hawkes surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.3% · 4,528
- Black or African American9.5% · 524
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 208
- Two or more races3.5% · 191
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 22
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hawkes
Hawkes 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
#6,162
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,555
+241 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 1.88
Rank movement Down 197 places
2020
#6,013
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,502
-53 bearers (-1.0%)
Per 100,000 1.84
Rank movement Up 149 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,965 | 5,314 | 1.97 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,162 | 5,555 | 1.88 | +241 bearers (+4.5%) | Down 197 places |
| 2020 | #6,013 | 5,502 | 1.84 | -53 bearers (-1.0%) | Up 149 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 Hawkes 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 | #6,162 | #6,013 | 2.4% |
| Count | 5,555 | 5,502 | -1.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.88 | 1.84 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hawkes bearers went from 5,555 to 5,502 (-1.0% change). The surname moved up 149 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,162 to #6,013.
FAQ
Hawkes surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hawkes?
Name Census estimates that about 6,309 living Americans carry the surname Hawkes. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 54,328 residents.
How common is Hawkes?
Hawkes ranks #6,013 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.84 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 5,502 people with the surname Hawkes. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,309), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.84 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 Hawkes.
Has Hawkes become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hawkes went from 5,555 recorded bearers to 5,502. That is a decrease of 53 (-1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,162 to #6,013.
What does the Census say about the background of Hawkes?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hawkes, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Hawkes in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.3% (4,528 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hawkes appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.3%), Black (9.5%), Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Hawkes (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 Hawkes mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a person who trained hawks used for hunting. 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 Hawkes (1.84 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 Hawkes?
Find out how many people have the surname Hawkes on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.