2000
#9,782
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,050
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.13
Rare Last name
Honea
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "at the honey" or "honey-colored."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,309 Americans carry the last name Honea. That puts it at #10,596 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 103,582 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Honea 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.
Bearers in the US
3.3K
1 in 103,582
Census rank
#10,596
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,886 bearers of the surname Honea in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10596th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Honea, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Honea
The surname Honea has its origins in the British Isles, with roots tracing back to medieval England and Scotland. It is believed to be a locational name, derived from a place name or geographical feature. One theory suggests that the name is a variant of Honiton, a town in Devon, England. Another possibility is that it stems from the Old English word "hone," which means a rocky outcrop or hill.
During the Middle Ages, the Honea surname first appeared in various historical records, such as the Domesday Book of 1086, compiled by William the Conqueror. This ancient manuscript mentions individuals bearing similar spellings like Honyton and Honiton, which could be ancestors of the modern Honea family.
The earliest documented instances of the Honea surname can be found in the 14th and 15th centuries. One notable example is John Honea, a merchant from Coventry, England, who was mentioned in the city's guild records in 1432. Another early bearer of the name was William Honea, a landowner in the Scottish Highlands, recorded in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1478.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the Honea surname. One such figure was Sir Thomas Honea (1612-1681), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Devonshire during the reign of Charles II. In the field of literature, there was James Honea (1718-1798), a Scottish poet and playwright whose works explored themes of rural life and folklore.
In the realm of exploration and discovery, Captain John Honea (1765-1836) was a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and participated in several significant battles. Another noteworthy individual was Elizabeth Honea (1802-1878), an American educator and advocate for women's rights, who established one of the first schools for girls in the state of Virginia.
Across the Atlantic, the Honea surname also took root in the United States, particularly in the southern states. One prominent figure was General William Honea (1822-1897), a Confederate soldier during the American Civil War, who later became a successful businessman and philanthropist in his home state of Georgia.
While the Honea surname has undergone various spelling variations over the centuries, such as Honnea, Honnay, and Honay, its core meaning and historical significance have endured, reflecting the rich tapestry of cultural heritage and diverse origins that have shaped this distinctive family name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Honea
Among Census respondents with the surname Honea, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Honea 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 Honea surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.8% · 2,562
- Two or more races4.4% · 126
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 117
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.2% · 64
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 10
- Black or African American0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Honea
Honea 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
#10,145
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,179
+129 bearers (+4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Down 363 places
2020
#10,596
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,886
-293 bearers (-9.2%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Down 451 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,782 | 3,050 | 1.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,145 | 3,179 | 1.08 | +129 bearers (+4.2%) | Down 363 places |
| 2020 | #10,596 | 2,886 | 0.97 | -293 bearers (-9.2%) | Down 451 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 Honea 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 | #10,145 | #10,596 | -4.4% |
| Count | 3,179 | 2,886 | -9.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 0.97 | -10.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Honea bearers went from 3,179 to 2,886 (-9.2% change). The surname moved down 451 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,145 to #10,596.
FAQ
Honea surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Honea?
Name Census estimates that about 3,309 living Americans carry the surname Honea. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 103,582 residents.
How common is Honea?
Honea ranks #10,596 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.97 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 2,886 people with the surname Honea. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,309), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.97 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 Honea.
Has Honea become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Honea went from 3,179 recorded bearers to 2,886. That is a decrease of 293 (-9.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,145 to #10,596.
What does the Census say about the background of Honea?
Among Census respondents with the surname Honea, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (4.1%). 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 Honea in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.8% (2,562 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Honea appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.8%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Hispanic (4.1%). 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 Honea (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 Honea mean?
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "at the honey" or "honey-colored." 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 Honea (0.97 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 Honea?
You can see how many people have the surname Honea on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.