2000
#321
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 87,038
First available Census row
Per 100,000 32.26
Uncommon Last name
Jennings
A patronymic surname derived from the given name Jenning, a medieval variant of John, meaning "son of Jenning."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 98,929 Americans carry the last name Jennings. That puts it at #356 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 28.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,465 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Jennings 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 Jennings with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
99K
1 in 3,465
Census rank
#356
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
28.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
86K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 86,271 bearers of the surname Jennings in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 28.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 356th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Jennings, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.0%. The next largest groups are Black (22.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Jennings
The surname Jennings is an English habitational name derived from either of the places called Jennings in Somerset or Jenynges in Kent. The name originated from the Old English words "geanian" meaning "gainful or fertile land" and "ing" meaning meadow or enclosure.
The earliest known record of the name dates back to the late 12th century in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire, where a William de Jenynges is mentioned. The Hundred Rolls of 1275 also record a Robert de Jenyns in Oxfordshire.
In the 13th century, the spelling variations included Jenyns, Jenins, and Jenynges. The name is found in various medieval records such as the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327 and the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1349.
The Jennings surname is also connected to the place name Jenynges in Kent, which was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Geninges. This place name is derived from the Old English personal name Gena or Gena's people.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir Edmund Jennings (c. 1590-1661), an English landowner and politician who represented Ripon in the Long Parliament. Another notable figure was David Jennings (1691-1762), a dissenting minister and tutor who authored several theological works.
In the 18th century, Sarah Jennings (1660-1744) was a prominent figure at the court of Queen Anne and became the Duchess of Marlborough after her marriage to John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough. Sir Patrick Jennings (1949-), an Irish professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper for clubs like Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal, is another well-known bearer of the name.
The Jennings surname has also been associated with various places in England, such as Jennings Farm in Kent, Jennings Place in Surrey, and Jennings Hill in Shropshire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jennings
Among Census respondents with the surname Jennings, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.0%. The next largest groups are Black (22.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Jennings 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 Jennings surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White68.0% · 58,703
- Black or African American22.4% · 19,288
- Two or more races4.4% · 3,833
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 3,110
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 830
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 507
Timeline
Historical Census data for Jennings
Jennings 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
#347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 89,700
+2,662 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 30.41
Rank movement Down 26 places
2020
#356
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 86,271
-3,429 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 28.86
Rank movement Down 9 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #321 | 87,038 | 32.26 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #347 | 89,700 | 30.41 | +2,662 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 26 places |
| 2020 | #356 | 86,271 | 28.86 | -3,429 bearers (-3.8%) | Down 9 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 Jennings 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 | #347 | #356 | -2.6% |
| Count | 89,700 | 86,271 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 30.41 | 28.86 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Jennings bearers went from 89,700 to 86,271 (-3.8% change). The surname moved down 9 positions in the national ranking, going from #347 to #356.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Jennings
FAQ
Jennings surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Jennings?
Name Census estimates that about 98,929 living Americans carry the surname Jennings. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,465 residents.
How common is Jennings?
Jennings ranks #356 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 28.86 per 100,000 residents, which is about 29 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 86,271 people with the surname Jennings. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (98,929), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 28.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 28.86 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 29 of them to have the surname Jennings.
Has Jennings become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Jennings went from 89,700 recorded bearers to 86,271. That is a decrease of 3,429 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #347 to #356.
What does the Census say about the background of Jennings?
Among Census respondents with the surname Jennings, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.0%. The next largest groups are Black (22.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Jennings in the 2020 Census, accounting for 68.0% (58,703 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Jennings appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (68.0%), Black (22.4%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Jennings (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 Jennings mean?
A patronymic surname derived from the given name Jenning, a medieval variant of John, meaning "son of Jenning." 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 Jennings (28.86 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 Jennings?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.