2000
#13,352
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,093
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.78
Rare Last name
Hosford
Derived from a place name meaning "ford by a hill" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,379 Americans carry the last name Hosford. That puts it at #13,921 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 144,075 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hosford 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 Hosford with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 144,075
Census rank
#13,921
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,075 bearers of the surname Hosford in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13921st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hosford, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hosford
The surname "Hosford" is of English origin, and it can be traced back to the early medieval period in England. The name is a locational surname, derived from a place called Hosford or Hoseford in either Devon or Somerset, England.
The name "Hosford" is believed to have its roots in the Old English words "hos" meaning "a hosier" or "a maker of hose" and "ford" meaning "a shallow river crossing." This suggests that the name may have originated from a location where hosiers or makers of hose lived near a ford or a shallow river crossing.
The earliest known record of the name "Hosford" dates back to the 13th century in the Hundredorum Rolls of Devon, which were administrative records kept by the English government. In these rolls, the name appears as "Osebern de Hoseford."
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Hosford, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Devon in 1299. The Pipe Rolls were financial records maintained by the English Exchequer, and they often included information about landowners and taxpayers.
Another notable figure with the surname "Hosford" was Sir George Hosford, a British naval officer who lived in the 17th century. He was born in 1623 and served as a captain in the Royal Navy during the Anglo-Dutch Wars.
In the 18th century, there was a notable artist named Thomas Hosford who was born in Exeter, Devon, in 1728. He was a landscape painter and is known for his works depicting rural scenes in Devon and Cornwall.
During the 19th century, one of the most prominent individuals with the surname "Hosford" was Sir Henry Hosford, a British diplomat and politician. He was born in 1824 and served as a Member of Parliament for several years, as well as holding diplomatic positions in various countries.
Another significant figure with the name "Hosford" was William Hosford, a British engineer and inventor who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was born in 1856 and is credited with several important inventions related to steam engines and agricultural machinery.
Over the centuries, the surname "Hosford" has undergone various spelling variations, such as Hoseforde, Hoseford, and Hossford, reflecting the regional dialects and scribal practices of different areas in England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hosford
Among Census respondents with the surname Hosford, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Hosford 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 Hosford surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 1,917
- Two or more races3.4% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 53
- Black or African American1.0% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hosford
Hosford 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
#13,700
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,210
+117 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 348 places
2020
#13,921
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,075
-135 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Down 221 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,352 | 2,093 | 0.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,700 | 2,210 | 0.75 | +117 bearers (+5.6%) | Down 348 places |
| 2020 | #13,921 | 2,075 | 0.69 | -135 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 221 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 Hosford 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 | #13,700 | #13,921 | -1.6% |
| Count | 2,210 | 2,075 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.75 | 0.69 | -7.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hosford bearers went from 2,210 to 2,075 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 221 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,700 to #13,921.
FAQ
Hosford surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hosford?
Name Census estimates that about 2,379 living Americans carry the surname Hosford. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 144,075 residents.
How common is Hosford?
Hosford ranks #13,921 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.69 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 2,075 people with the surname Hosford. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,379), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.69 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 Hosford.
Has Hosford become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hosford went from 2,210 recorded bearers to 2,075. That is a decrease of 135 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,700 to #13,921.
What does the Census say about the background of Hosford?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hosford, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Hosford in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (1,917 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hosford appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Hosford (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 Hosford mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "ford by a hill" in Old English. 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 Hosford (0.69 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 Hosford?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Hosford? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.