2000
#7,026
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,398
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.63
Rare Last name
Hinshaw
A locational surname derived from a place meaning "Hind's shaw," referring to a small wood or copse inhabited by deer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,772 Americans carry the last name Hinshaw. That puts it at #7,673 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.39 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 71,826 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hinshaw 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 Hinshaw with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.8K
1 in 71,826
Census rank
#7,673
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,161 bearers of the surname Hinshaw in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.39 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7673rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hinshaw, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hinshaw
The surname Hinshaw has its origins in England, where it first appeared in the 14th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "hine" meaning a servant or farm laborer, and "sceaga" meaning a small wood or shaw. The name likely referred to someone who lived or worked in a small wooded area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Lancashire Inquests of 1311, which mentions a Richard del Hynshagh. This suggests that the name was initially rendered as "Hynshagh" or "Hinshagh" before evolving into its modern form.
The Hinshaw surname is also closely associated with the town of Hinshaw, located in the parish of Whalley in Lancashire, England. This place name may have contributed to the development of the surname, as it was common for people to adopt locational surnames based on the areas they were from.
In the 16th century, the name appears in various records, such as the Subsidy Rolls of Lancashire in 1523, which lists a Robert Hyndshaw. The Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1524 also mention a John Hynshaw.
One notable bearer of the Hinshaw surname was William Hinshaw, a prominent English merchant and landowner who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was born in 1570 and owned significant property in the counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire.
Another individual of note was Thomas Hinshaw, a Puritan minister who lived from 1618 to 1689. He served as a rector in the Church of England and was known for his strong religious convictions.
In the 18th century, the name appears in various parish records across England, including the baptism of John Hinshaw in the town of Burnley, Lancashire, in 1725. Around the same time, a Richard Hinshaw was recorded as a landowner in the nearby village of Habergham Eaves.
As the centuries progressed, the Hinshaw surname continued to be found throughout England, particularly in the northern counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire. Some bearers of the name also migrated to other parts of the world, including North America and Australia.
One significant bearer of the Hinshaw name in more recent history was James Hinshaw, born in 1833 in Pennsylvania. He was a prominent businessman and banker who played a key role in the development of the oil industry in the late 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hinshaw
Among Census respondents with the surname Hinshaw, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Hinshaw 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 Hinshaw surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 3,731
- Two or more races4.0% · 167
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 117
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 57
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 54
- Black or African American0.8% · 35
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hinshaw
Hinshaw 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
#7,463
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,466
+68 bearers (+1.5%)
Per 100,000 1.51
Rank movement Down 437 places
2020
#7,673
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,161
-305 bearers (-6.8%)
Per 100,000 1.39
Rank movement Down 210 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,026 | 4,398 | 1.63 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,463 | 4,466 | 1.51 | +68 bearers (+1.5%) | Down 437 places |
| 2020 | #7,673 | 4,161 | 1.39 | -305 bearers (-6.8%) | Down 210 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 Hinshaw 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 | #7,463 | #7,673 | -2.8% |
| Count | 4,466 | 4,161 | -6.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.51 | 1.39 | -7.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hinshaw bearers went from 4,466 to 4,161 (-6.8% change). The surname moved down 210 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,463 to #7,673.
FAQ
Hinshaw surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hinshaw?
Name Census estimates that about 4,772 living Americans carry the surname Hinshaw. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 71,826 residents.
How common is Hinshaw?
Hinshaw ranks #7,673 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.39 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 4,161 people with the surname Hinshaw. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,772), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.39 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.39 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 Hinshaw.
Has Hinshaw become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hinshaw went from 4,466 recorded bearers to 4,161. That is a decrease of 305 (-6.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,463 to #7,673.
What does the Census say about the background of Hinshaw?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hinshaw, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Hinshaw in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (3,731 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hinshaw appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Hinshaw (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 Hinshaw mean?
A locational surname derived from a place meaning "Hind's shaw," referring to a small wood or copse inhabited by deer. 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 Hinshaw (1.39 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 share the surname Hinshaw?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.