Find out how popular the last name Howerton is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Howerton.

Howerton, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Howerton surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Howerton in America

Howerton is the 5342nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Howerton surname appeared 6,516 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Howerton.

We can also compare 2010 data for Howerton to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Howerton

The surname Howerton has its origins in the northern English counties of Yorkshire and Northumberland. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "hol" meaning hill or hollow, and "tun" meaning a settlement or farmstead. Thus, Howerton would have originally referred to a settlement situated in a hollow or on a hill.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, the earliest comprehensive record of landowners in England, there are several entries for places with similar names like Holeton and Holintun. These may have been early forms or variations of the name Howerton.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Howerton itself can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Yorkshire from 1273, where a William de Holeton is mentioned. The "de" prefix indicated he was from the place called Holeton, which was likely an early spelling of Howerton.

During the 13th and 14th centuries, the surname began appearing more frequently in various records across northern England. Variations in spelling included Houlton, Holton, and Holtoun, reflecting the regional dialects and scribal inconsistencies of the time.

Notable individuals with the surname Howerton throughout history include:

1. Thomas Howerton (c. 1550-1621), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Master of St John's College, Cambridge.

2. Richard Howerton (1590-1668), an English landowner and member of parliament who represented Northumberland during the English Civil War.

3. Elizabeth Howerton (1626-1711), an English Quaker missionary who traveled extensively in the American colonies, promoting her faith and facing persecution.

4. John Howerton (1732-1806), an American frontiersman and explorer who was among the first settlers in Kentucky and helped establish the Wilderness Road.

5. Mary Howerton (1799-1888), an American educator and abolitionist who founded one of the first schools for African American children in Ohio.

While the name Howerton became well-established in England, it also spread to other parts of the British Isles and eventually to the American colonies as migrants carried the surname with them across the Atlantic.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Howerton

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Howerton.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Howerton was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Howerton has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Howerton was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Howerton, please contact us.

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