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

Ironside, 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 Ironside surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ironside in America

Ironside is the 37029th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ironside surname appeared 603 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Ironside.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ironside 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 Ironside

The surname Ironside is of English origin, derived from the Old English words 'iren' meaning iron and 'side' meaning side or flank. It was likely originally a nickname given to someone who wore iron armor or was particularly hardy and strong.

The name can be traced back to the 11th century, with records showing it being used as a surname in various parts of England. One of the earliest recorded instances is in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Irenside'.

During the Middle Ages, the name was often spelled in different ways, such as 'Irneside', 'Irenssyde', and 'Ironsyde'. It was also sometimes combined with other words or place names, such as 'Ironside of Warwick' or 'Ironside of Yorkshire'.

One of the most famous individuals with the surname Ironside was Edmund Ironside (c. 990-1016), the son of King Aethelred the Unready and briefly King of England for a few months in 1016 before being defeated by Cnut the Great.

Another notable person was Sir Ralph Ironside (c. 1285-1340), an English knight who fought in the Scottish Wars of Independence under King Edward I and King Edward II. He was also a member of the Ironside family from Northumberland.

In the 16th century, there was Sir Edmund Ironside (c. 1520-1600), an English soldier and statesman who served under Queen Elizabeth I and was involved in the suppression of the Northern Rebellion in 1569.

During the English Civil War in the 17th century, Edward Ironside (1613-1688) was a prominent Parliamentarian soldier and one of the regicide judges who signed the death warrant of King Charles I.

Another historical figure was Sir Henry Ironside (1826-1901), a British Army officer who served in the Crimean War and the Indian Rebellion of 1857, and later became the Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in India.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ironside

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

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 Ironside 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 Ironside 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 Ironside was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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