2000
#19,908
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,248
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.46
Rare Last name
Heatley
A surname derived from a place name in England containing the Old English word "hēath" meaning a heathland or area of uncultivated land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,469 Americans carry the last name Heatley. That puts it at #20,879 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.43 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 233,325 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Heatley 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 Heatley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.5K
1 in 233,325
Census rank
#20,879
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,281 bearers of the surname Heatley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.43 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 20879th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Heatley, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (23.7%) and Hispanic (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Heatley
The surname Heatley is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "hēath" meaning "heather" and "lēah" meaning "meadow" or "clearing." It is a locational surname, indicating that the original bearers of the name lived near a heather-covered meadow or clearing.
Heatley is first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Hethelegh" and "Hetelea," referring to places in Derbyshire and Staffordshire, respectively. This suggests that the name was already in use before the Norman Conquest of 1066.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname itself is in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, which mention a William de Hetheley. In the same century, the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire (1272) mention a William de Heteleg.
The name has undergone various spelling variations over the centuries, including Heatley, Heatly, Hetley, and Hetly. These variations can be found in historical records from different regions of England.
Notable individuals with the surname Heatley include:
1. John Heatley (c. 1590-1670), an English clergyman and religious writer.
2. George Heatley (1768-1828), an English landscape painter known for his depictions of the Lake District.
3. Thomas Heatley (1835-1912), a Canadian politician who served as a member of the House of Commons of Canada.
4. Samuel Heatley (1849-1929), a New Zealand politician and businessman who served as Mayor of Invercargill.
5. Cyril Heatley (1888-1965), a British Army officer who served in World War I and World War II, and was awarded the Military Cross.
The name Heatley has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Heatley in Northumberland, Heatley Green in Cheshire, and Heatley Lane in Lancashire, further reinforcing its locational origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Heatley
Among Census respondents with the surname Heatley, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (23.7%) and Hispanic (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Heatley 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 Heatley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.2% · 861
- Black or African American23.7% · 304
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 63
- Two or more races2.6% · 33
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 11
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Heatley
Heatley 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
#20,274
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,312
+64 bearers (+5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.44
Rank movement Down 366 places
2020
#20,879
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,281
-31 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.43
Rank movement Down 605 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #19,908 | 1,248 | 0.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #20,274 | 1,312 | 0.44 | +64 bearers (+5.1%) | Down 366 places |
| 2020 | #20,879 | 1,281 | 0.43 | -31 bearers (-2.4%) | Down 605 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 Heatley 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 | #20,274 | #20,879 | -3.0% |
| Count | 1,312 | 1,281 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.44 | 0.43 | -2.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Heatley bearers went from 1,312 to 1,281 (-2.4% change). The surname moved down 605 positions in the national ranking, going from #20,274 to #20,879.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Heatley
FAQ
Heatley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Heatley?
Name Census estimates that about 1,469 living Americans carry the surname Heatley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 233,325 residents.
How common is Heatley?
Heatley ranks #20,879 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.43 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 1,281 people with the surname Heatley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,469), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.43 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.43 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 Heatley.
Has Heatley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Heatley went from 1,312 recorded bearers to 1,281. That is a decrease of 31 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #20,274 to #20,879.
What does the Census say about the background of Heatley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Heatley, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (23.7%) and Hispanic (4.9%). 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 Heatley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.2% (861 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Heatley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.2%), Black (23.7%), Hispanic (4.9%). 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 Heatley (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 Heatley mean?
A surname derived from a place name in England containing the Old English word "hēath" meaning a heathland or area of uncultivated land. 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 Heatley (0.43 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 Heatley?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.