2000
#1,957
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,872
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.25
Uncommon Last name
Huddleston
Derived from a place name meaning "farmstead on the hill" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 18,444 Americans carry the last name Huddleston. That puts it at #2,206 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 18,584 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Huddleston 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 Huddleston with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
18K
1 in 18,584
Census rank
#2,206
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
16K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 16,084 bearers of the surname Huddleston in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2206th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Huddleston, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.4%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Huddleston
The surname Huddleston originated in England, likely in the 12th or 13th century. It is derived from a place name and is a locational surname, meaning it referred to someone who came from a particular town or village. The name is believed to be derived from the Anglo-Saxon words "hūd" meaning "hood" and "lēston" meaning "place."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled "Hodleston." This reference suggests that the name was in use before the Norman Conquest of 1066. The name may have originally referred to someone from a place called Huddleston, which could have been a small hamlet or village that no longer exists.
In the 13th century, the name appears as "Hudeleston" in various records, such as the Hundred Rolls of 1273. Over time, the spelling evolved to its modern form, Huddleston. The name was particularly prevalent in the northern counties of England, such as Yorkshire and Lancashire.
One notable bearer of the name was Sir John Huddleston (c.1517-1557), an English soldier and member of the Privy Council of England during the reign of Queen Mary I. He played a significant role in suppressing the Wyatt Rebellion and was later appointed as Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire.
Another prominent figure was Sir Edmund Huddleston (c.1630-1700), an English Catholic landowner and member of Parliament. He remained loyal to King James II during the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and was later imprisoned for his support of the Jacobite cause.
In the 18th century, George Huddleston (1720-1809) was a successful merchant and landowner in Yorkshire. He was also a notable patron of the arts and supported several artists, including the painter George Stubbs.
In the 19th century, Silas Huddleston (1828-1891) was a prominent lawyer and politician from Kentucky, United States. He served as a judge and was later elected to the Kentucky State Senate.
Another notable figure was John Walter Huddleston (1876-1963), an English cricketer who played for Gloucestershire County Cricket Club and represented England in Test matches against Australia and South Africa.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Huddleston
Among Census respondents with the surname Huddleston, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.4%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Huddleston 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 Huddleston surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.4% · 12,935
- Black or African American9.4% · 1,509
- Two or more races4.7% · 754
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 645
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 123
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 118
Timeline
Historical Census data for Huddleston
Huddleston 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
#2,102
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,231
+359 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 5.84
Rank movement Down 145 places
2020
#2,206
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,084
-1,147 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 5.38
Rank movement Down 104 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,957 | 16,872 | 6.25 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,102 | 17,231 | 5.84 | +359 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 145 places |
| 2020 | #2,206 | 16,084 | 5.38 | -1,147 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 104 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 Huddleston 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 | #2,102 | #2,206 | -4.9% |
| Count | 17,231 | 16,084 | -6.7% |
| Per 100K | 5.84 | 5.38 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Huddleston bearers went from 17,231 to 16,084 (-6.7% change). The surname moved down 104 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,102 to #2,206.
FAQ
Huddleston surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Huddleston?
Name Census estimates that about 18,444 living Americans carry the surname Huddleston. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 18,584 residents.
How common is Huddleston?
Huddleston ranks #2,206 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.38 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 16,084 people with the surname Huddleston. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (18,444), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.38 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Huddleston.
Has Huddleston become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Huddleston went from 17,231 recorded bearers to 16,084. That is a decrease of 1,147 (-6.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,102 to #2,206.
What does the Census say about the background of Huddleston?
Among Census respondents with the surname Huddleston, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.4%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Huddleston in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.4% (12,935 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Huddleston appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.4%), Black (9.4%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Huddleston (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 Huddleston mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "farmstead on the 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 Huddleston (5.38 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 surname Huddleston?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.