2000
#8,040
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,804
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.41
Rare Last name
Hollingshead
From the English place name, likely referring to someone who lived near a holly grove on a hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,307 Americans carry the last name Hollingshead. That puts it at #8,442 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.26 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 79,581 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hollingshead 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 Hollingshead with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.3K
1 in 79,581
Census rank
#8,442
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,756 bearers of the surname Hollingshead in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.26 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8442nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollingshead, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hollingshead
The surname Hollingshead originated in England, specifically in the county of Lancashire. The name can be traced back to the 13th century and is believed to derive from the Old English words "holh" meaning "hollow" or "sunken place" and "ingas" meaning "people of," combined with "heafod" meaning "head." Together, these elements suggest that the name referred to a person living near a hollow area or sunken valley.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Hollingshead appears in the Assize Rolls of Lancashire from the year 1285, where a William del Hollingsheved is mentioned. This spelling variation suggests that the name originally referred to a geographic location, likely a place called Hollingshead.
In the 14th century, the Hollingsheads were well-established landowners in the Lancashire area. Records from this period mention a John de Hollingshead, who was born around 1320 and held lands in the township of Eccleston.
During the English Civil War in the mid-17th century, a notable figure named Richard Hollingshead (1607-1654) served as a captain in the Parliamentarian army. He fought against the Royalists and was involved in the siege of Manchester in 1642.
In the late 18th century, a prominent member of the family was James Hollingshead (1751-1831), a successful merchant and landowner in Lancashire. He was instrumental in the development of the town of Ormskirk and served as its mayor.
Another noteworthy individual was Samuel Hollingshead (1810-1886), a Methodist minister and author who wrote several religious works, including "The Doctrine of Eternal Punishment" and "The Sacrifice of the Son of God."
In the realm of literature, Michael Hollingshead (1919-1992) was a British writer and counterculture figure. He co-authored the book "The Quintessence of the Sixties" and was known for his association with the psychedelic movement of the 1960s.
Throughout history, the Hollingshead surname has been recorded with various spellings, such as Hollingshead, Hollingesheved, Hollingeshed, and Hollingshed, reflecting the evolution of language and regional variations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hollingshead
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollingshead, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Hollingshead 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 Hollingshead surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.2% · 3,350
- Two or more races3.8% · 144
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 117
- Black or African American3.0% · 111
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 16
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hollingshead
Hollingshead 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
#8,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,807
+3 bearers (+0.1%)
Per 100,000 1.29
Rank movement Down 599 places
2020
#8,442
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,756
-51 bearers (-1.3%)
Per 100,000 1.26
Rank movement Up 197 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,040 | 3,804 | 1.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,639 | 3,807 | 1.29 | +3 bearers (+0.1%) | Down 599 places |
| 2020 | #8,442 | 3,756 | 1.26 | -51 bearers (-1.3%) | Up 197 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 Hollingshead 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 | #8,639 | #8,442 | 2.3% |
| Count | 3,807 | 3,756 | -1.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.29 | 1.26 | -2.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hollingshead bearers went from 3,807 to 3,756 (-1.3% change). The surname moved up 197 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,639 to #8,442.
FAQ
Hollingshead surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hollingshead?
Name Census estimates that about 4,307 living Americans carry the surname Hollingshead. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 79,581 residents.
How common is Hollingshead?
Hollingshead ranks #8,442 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.26 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 3,756 people with the surname Hollingshead. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,307), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.26 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.26 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 Hollingshead.
Has Hollingshead become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hollingshead went from 3,807 recorded bearers to 3,756. That is a decrease of 51 (-1.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,639 to #8,442.
What does the Census say about the background of Hollingshead?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollingshead, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Hollingshead in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.2% (3,350 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hollingshead appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.2%), Two or More Races (3.8%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Hollingshead (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 Hollingshead mean?
From the English place name, likely referring to someone who lived near a holly grove on a hill. 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 Hollingshead (1.26 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 Hollingshead?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.