2000
#6,781
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,582
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.70
Rare Last name
Hudgens
Derived from the personal name Hugh, meaning "heart, mind, or spirit," combined with a patronymic suffix.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,983 Americans carry the last name Hudgens. That puts it at #7,397 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 68,785 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hudgens 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
5.0K
1 in 68,785
Census rank
#7,397
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,345 bearers of the surname Hudgens in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7397th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hudgens, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.5%. The next largest groups are Black (10.7%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hudgens
The surname HUDGENS originates from England. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word 'hudian', meaning 'to cover' or 'to cover oneself'. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who made or sold hoods or cloaks.
HUDGENS is first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Huddingis'. This entry refers to a landowner in Gloucestershire. Other early spellings include 'Hoddyng' and 'Hudding', found in various historical documents from the 13th and 14th centuries.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was William Hudgens, a merchant from Bristol who lived in the late 14th century. Records show that he traded in wool and cloth, which aligns with the potential origin of the name being related to clothing.
In the 16th century, the HUDGENS name was particularly prevalent in the counties of Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, and Oxfordshire. This is evidenced by parish records and other historical documents from that period.
Notable individuals with the surname HUDGENS include:
1. Richard Hudgens (c. 1580-1647), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Rector of St. Mary's Church in Oxford.
2. Thomas Hudgens (1685-1757), a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and a prominent landowner in colonial Virginia.
3. Mary Hudgens (1737-1798), an American pioneer and early settler in the state of Kentucky.
4. John Hudgens (1812-1891), a British architect known for designing several churches and public buildings in London.
5. William Hudgens (1876-1942), an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Hudgens Foundation, a charitable organization focused on education and healthcare.
The HUDGENS surname has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Hudgens Farm in Somerset and Hudgens Hill in Gloucestershire. These locations likely derive their names from early settlers bearing the HUDGENS surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hudgens
Among Census respondents with the surname Hudgens, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.5%. The next largest groups are Black (10.7%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Hudgens 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 Hudgens surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.5% · 3,453
- Black or African American10.7% · 467
- Two or more races4.6% · 200
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 153
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 41
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 31
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hudgens
Hudgens 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
#7,237
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,609
+27 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 1.56
Rank movement Down 456 places
2020
#7,397
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,345
-264 bearers (-5.7%)
Per 100,000 1.45
Rank movement Down 160 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,781 | 4,582 | 1.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,237 | 4,609 | 1.56 | +27 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 456 places |
| 2020 | #7,397 | 4,345 | 1.45 | -264 bearers (-5.7%) | Down 160 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 Hudgens 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 | #7,237 | #7,397 | -2.2% |
| Count | 4,609 | 4,345 | -5.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.56 | 1.45 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hudgens bearers went from 4,609 to 4,345 (-5.7% change). The surname moved down 160 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,237 to #7,397.
FAQ
Hudgens surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hudgens?
Name Census estimates that about 4,983 living Americans carry the surname Hudgens. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 68,785 residents.
How common is Hudgens?
Hudgens ranks #7,397 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.45 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 4,345 people with the surname Hudgens. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,983), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.45 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 Hudgens.
Has Hudgens become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hudgens went from 4,609 recorded bearers to 4,345. That is a decrease of 264 (-5.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,237 to #7,397.
What does the Census say about the background of Hudgens?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hudgens, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.5%. The next largest groups are Black (10.7%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Hudgens in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.5% (3,453 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hudgens appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.5%), Black (10.7%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Hudgens (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 Hudgens mean?
Derived from the personal name Hugh, meaning "heart, mind, or spirit," combined with a patronymic suffix. 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 Hudgens (1.45 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 Americans have the surname Hudgens?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.