2000
#14,457
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,893
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.70
Rare Last name
Hurtt
Derived from a nickname for a strong or brave person, from Middle English "hert" meaning "heart" or "stag."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,077 Americans carry the last name Hurtt. That puts it at #15,545 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 165,024 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hurtt 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 Hurtt with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.1K
1 in 165,024
Census rank
#15,545
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,811 bearers of the surname Hurtt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15545th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hurtt, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.6%. The next largest groups are Black (17.2%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hurtt
The surname Hurtt is believed to have originated in England and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English word "hyrde," which means a herdsman or shepherd. The earliest recorded spelling variations include Hird, Hurd, and Hurde.
One of the earliest references to the name Hurtt can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is recorded as "Hurdman" in the county of Lincolnshire. This suggests that the name was already well-established in certain regions of England by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066.
During the Middle Ages, the Hurtt family was particularly prominent in the counties of Wiltshire and Somerset. In the 13th century, records show a John Hurde holding lands in the village of Hurde, near Trowbridge in Wiltshire. This place name may have contributed to the development of the surname.
Notable individuals with the surname Hurtt include Sir Richard Hurd (1720-1808), an English clergyman and writer who served as Bishop of Worcester. Another prominent figure was Benjamin Hurd (1774-1847), an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts.
In the 16th century, the name Hurtt appeared in various records across England, such as the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1572, which listed a Thomas Hurde. The Hurtt family also had a presence in the county of Yorkshire, where a William Hurd was recorded in the Wills and Administrations of the Archdeaconry of Richmond in 1619.
Other notable individuals with the surname Hurtt include John Hurd (1651-1708), an English clergyman and author who served as the Bishop of Worcester, and Michael Hurd (1928-2006), an English actor and author known for his roles in films and television series.
Throughout its history, the surname Hurtt has maintained a strong connection to its English roots, with many branches of the family still residing in various parts of the country. While the name has evolved over time, its origins can be traced back to the humble occupation of a herdsman or shepherd in the medieval period.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hurtt
Among Census respondents with the surname Hurtt, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.6%. The next largest groups are Black (17.2%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Hurtt 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 Hurtt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.6% · 1,314
- Black or African American17.2% · 311
- Two or more races6.4% · 115
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 55
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hurtt
Hurtt 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
#13,922
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,169
+276 bearers (+14.6%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Up 535 places
2020
#15,545
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,811
-358 bearers (-16.5%)
Per 100,000 0.61
Rank movement Down 1,623 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,457 | 1,893 | 0.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,922 | 2,169 | 0.74 | +276 bearers (+14.6%) | Up 535 places |
| 2020 | #15,545 | 1,811 | 0.61 | -358 bearers (-16.5%) | Down 1,623 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 Hurtt 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 | #13,922 | #15,545 | -11.7% |
| Count | 2,169 | 1,811 | -16.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.61 | -18.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hurtt bearers went from 2,169 to 1,811 (-16.5% change). The surname moved down 1,623 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,922 to #15,545.
FAQ
Hurtt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hurtt?
Name Census estimates that about 2,077 living Americans carry the surname Hurtt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 165,024 residents.
How common is Hurtt?
Hurtt ranks #15,545 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.61 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 1,811 people with the surname Hurtt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,077), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.61 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 Hurtt.
Has Hurtt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hurtt went from 2,169 recorded bearers to 1,811. That is a decrease of 358 (-16.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,922 to #15,545.
What does the Census say about the background of Hurtt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hurtt, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.6%. The next largest groups are Black (17.2%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Hurtt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.6% (1,314 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hurtt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.6%), Black (17.2%), Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Hurtt (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 Hurtt mean?
Derived from a nickname for a strong or brave person, from Middle English "hert" meaning "heart" or "stag." 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 Hurtt (0.61 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 common is the surname Hurtt?
For a quick modern take, check how common the surname Hurtt is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.