2000
#126,400
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 125
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Hilliar
English surname derived from a personal name derived from the Norman French "hillier", meaning "hillock" or "hilly area".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 138 Americans carry the last name Hilliar. That puts it at #142,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,483,727 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hilliar 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 Hilliar with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
138
1 in 2,483,727
Census rank
#142,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
120
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 120 bearers of the surname Hilliar in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hilliar, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hilliar
The surname Hilliar is believed to have originated in England, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the 13th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Old English words "hyll," meaning hill or slope, and "hyrde," meaning herdsman or shepherd. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived or worked on a hill or slope, tending to livestock.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Leicestershire from 1230, where it appears as "Hilliar." This document was a record of financial transactions and accounts kept by the English government at the time.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as "Hilliard" and "Hyllyard," reflecting the variations in spelling that were common during that era. One notable example is Robert Hilliar, a merchant from London who was active in the early 1300s.
The Hilliar name has also been associated with certain place names, particularly in the counties of Leicestershire and Warwickshire. For instance, there is a hamlet called Hilliard's Cross in Leicestershire, which may have been named after a person or family bearing the Hilliar surname.
During the 16th century, the name gained prominence with the birth of Nicholas Hilliard (1537-1619), an English goldsmith, limner, and painter who is widely regarded as one of the greatest English Renaissance artists. He is particularly renowned for his miniature portraits of members of the English royal court.
Another notable figure with the Hilliar surname was John Hilliard (1561-1635), an English mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the understanding of logarithms and the construction of mathematical instruments.
In the 18th century, the name continued to be present, with individuals such as Edward Hilliar (1734-1786), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the American Revolutionary War, and Sir Gabriel Hilliar (1756-1824), a British army officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars.
During the 19th century, the Hilliar surname was carried by individuals such as William Hilliard (1812-1877), an English architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings in London, and George Hilliar (1841-1909), a British artist and illustrator known for his paintings of military subjects.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hilliar
Among Census respondents with the surname Hilliar, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hilliar 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 Hilliar surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.8% · 103
- Two or more races5.0% · 6
- Black or African American3.3% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hilliar
Hilliar 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
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
+2 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,648 places
2020
#142,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
-7 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,001 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #126,400 | 125 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 6,648 places |
| 2020 | #142,049 | 120 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 9,001 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 Hilliar 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 | #133,048 | #142,049 | -6.8% |
| Count | 127 | 120 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hilliar bearers went from 127 to 120 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 9,001 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #142,049.
FAQ
Hilliar surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hilliar?
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the surname Hilliar. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,483,727 residents.
How common is Hilliar?
Hilliar ranks #142,049 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 120 people with the surname Hilliar. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (138), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Hilliar.
Has Hilliar become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hilliar went from 127 recorded bearers to 120. That is a decrease of 7 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #142,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Hilliar?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hilliar, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (3.3%). 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 Hilliar in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.8% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hilliar appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.8%), Two or More Races (5.0%), Black (3.3%). 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 Hilliar (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 Hilliar mean?
English surname derived from a personal name derived from the Norman French "hillier", meaning "hillock" or "hilly area". 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 Hilliar (0.04 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 last name Hilliar?
Want to know how many people have the surname Hilliar? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.