2000
#7,991
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,836
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.42
Rare Last name
Hurlburt
A locational surname derived from a place meaning "pond frequented by snipes" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,207 Americans carry the last name Hurlburt. That puts it at #8,599 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.23 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 81,472 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hurlburt 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
4.2K
1 in 81,472
Census rank
#8,599
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,669 bearers of the surname Hurlburt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.23 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8599th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hurlburt, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hurlburt
The surname Hurlburt has its origins in England, traced back to the medieval era. The name is derived from the Old English words "hyr" meaning "hire" and "burt," which translates to a "shelter" or "dwelling." This suggests that the name initially referred to someone who lived in a rented or hired dwelling.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Hurlburt can be found in various historical records from the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable reference is the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which mentions a John Hurlburt in Oxfordshire. The name also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, indicating its spread across different regions of England.
In the 16th century, the name evolved into various spellings, such as Hurlbat, Hurlbatt, Hurlbert, and Hurlbutt. These variations reflect the inconsistencies in written records and regional pronunciation differences during that time period.
The name Hurlburt has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Sir Henry Hurlburt (c. 1460-1529), a prominent English landowner and Member of Parliament for Wiltshire during the reign of Henry VIII.
Another significant figure was Thomas Hurlburt (c. 1615-1689), an English settler who immigrated to America in the 1630s and became one of the founders of Wethersfield, Connecticut. His descendants played important roles in the American Revolutionary War and the early development of the United States.
In the 18th century, William Hurlburt (1721-1808) was a renowned American silversmith and patriot from Connecticut. He designed and crafted some of the finest silver pieces of the colonial era, and his work is highly prized by collectors today.
During the 19th century, Elisha P. Hurlburt (1809-1873) was a prominent lawyer and politician from New York. He served as a judge and was elected to the United States House of Representatives, representing New York's 30th congressional district from 1859 to 1863.
More recently, Samuel A. Hurlburt (1865-1922) was an influential American diplomat and author. He served as the United States Ambassador to Colombia and authored several books on international relations and diplomacy in the early 20th century.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals who have carried the surname Hurlburt throughout history, reflecting its enduring presence across various fields and regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hurlburt
Among Census respondents with the surname Hurlburt, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Hurlburt 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 Hurlburt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 3,319
- Two or more races4.6% · 170
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 114
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 29
- Black or African American0.5% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hurlburt
Hurlburt 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
#8,587
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,836
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 1.30
Rank movement Down 596 places
2020
#8,599
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,669
-167 bearers (-4.4%)
Per 100,000 1.23
Rank movement Down 12 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,991 | 3,836 | 1.42 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,587 | 3,836 | 1.30 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 596 places |
| 2020 | #8,599 | 3,669 | 1.23 | -167 bearers (-4.4%) | Down 12 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 Hurlburt 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 | #8,587 | #8,599 | -0.1% |
| Count | 3,836 | 3,669 | -4.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.30 | 1.23 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hurlburt bearers went from 3,836 to 3,669 (-4.4% change). The surname moved down 12 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,587 to #8,599.
FAQ
Hurlburt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hurlburt?
Name Census estimates that about 4,207 living Americans carry the surname Hurlburt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 81,472 residents.
How common is Hurlburt?
Hurlburt ranks #8,599 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.23 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 3,669 people with the surname Hurlburt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,207), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.23 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.23 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 Hurlburt.
Has Hurlburt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hurlburt went from 3,836 recorded bearers to 3,669. That is a decrease of 167 (-4.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,587 to #8,599.
What does the Census say about the background of Hurlburt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hurlburt, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Hurlburt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (3,319 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hurlburt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Two or More Races (4.6%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Hurlburt (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 Hurlburt mean?
A locational surname derived from a place meaning "pond frequented by snipes" 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 Hurlburt (1.23 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 share the surname Hurlburt?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.