2000
#7,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,253
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.58
Rare Last name
Judson
Derived from the place name Judson, meaning "son of Jordan" or "son of Judd."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,757 Americans carry the last name Judson. That puts it at #7,694 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.39 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 72,053 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Judson 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 Judson with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.8K
1 in 72,053
Census rank
#7,694
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,148 bearers of the surname Judson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.39 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7694th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Judson, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.3%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Judson
The surname Judson has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English given name "Judde," a diminutive form of the name "Judocus" or "Jodocus," which was a Latinized version of the Germanic name "Josse." This name was popular among early Christians and was borne by several saints.
The surname Judson likely emerged as a patronymic, meaning "son of Judde." It first appeared in records in the 13th century, with early spellings including "Judson," "Juddeson," and "Judsone." One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire in 1273, which mentions a "Willelmus Juddesone."
During the medieval period, the Judson family was primarily concentrated in the counties of Cambridgeshire, Suffolk, and Norfolk in eastern England. Some early references to the name can be found in the Lay Subsidy Rolls for these counties, which were tax records compiled between the 13th and 16th centuries.
One notable early bearer of the surname was William Judson, who was born in the late 15th century and served as the Mayor of Norwich, a prominent city in Norfolk, in 1528. Another early figure was Adoniram Judson (1788-1850), an American missionary and influential figure in the establishment of Protestant missions in Burma (now Myanmar).
In the 17th century, the Judson family had connections to several place names in England, such as Judsons Grove in Lincolnshire and Judson's Farm in Hertfordshire. These place names likely derived from the surname itself, indicating areas where members of the Judson family lived or held land.
Other notable individuals with the Judson surname include Edward Judson (1789-1846), an American Baptist minister and writer; Olivia Judson (born 1962), a British evolutionary biologist and author; and Montagu Judson (1892-1963), a British actor and film director.
While the Judson surname has its roots in medieval England, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through immigration to North America and other English-speaking countries. However, its origins can be traced back to the Old English given name "Judde" and its subsequent development as a patronymic surname in the eastern counties of England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Judson
Among Census respondents with the surname Judson, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.3%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Judson 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 Judson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.3% · 3,330
- Black or African American11.2% · 464
- Two or more races3.7% · 155
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 129
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 53
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Judson
Judson 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
#7,524
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,422
+169 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 1.50
Rank movement Down 290 places
2020
#7,694
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,148
-274 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 1.39
Rank movement Down 170 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,234 | 4,253 | 1.58 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,524 | 4,422 | 1.50 | +169 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 290 places |
| 2020 | #7,694 | 4,148 | 1.39 | -274 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 170 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 Judson 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 | #7,524 | #7,694 | -2.3% |
| Count | 4,422 | 4,148 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.50 | 1.39 | -7.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Judson bearers went from 4,422 to 4,148 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 170 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,524 to #7,694.
FAQ
Judson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Judson?
Name Census estimates that about 4,757 living Americans carry the surname Judson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 72,053 residents.
How common is Judson?
Judson ranks #7,694 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.39 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 4,148 people with the surname Judson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,757), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.39 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.39 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 Judson.
Has Judson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Judson went from 4,422 recorded bearers to 4,148. That is a decrease of 274 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,524 to #7,694.
What does the Census say about the background of Judson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Judson, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.3%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Judson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.3% (3,330 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Judson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.3%), Black (11.2%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Judson (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 Judson mean?
Derived from the place name Judson, meaning "son of Jordan" or "son of Judd." 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 Judson (1.39 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 are called Judson?
You can see how many people have the surname Judson on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.