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

Justin, 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 Justin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Justin in America

Justin is the 10369th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Justin surname appeared 3,109 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Justin.

We can also compare 2010 data for Justin 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 Justin

The surname Justin has its origins in ancient Rome, deriving from the Latin name Justinus, which itself is a derivative of the name Justus, meaning "just" or "upright." The name was commonly used in the Roman Empire and later spread throughout Europe during the expansion of the Roman influence.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Justin can be traced back to medieval France, where it was often spelled as "Justin" or "Joustin." In the 11th century, the name appears in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, indicating the presence of individuals bearing the surname in the Norman conquest of England.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Justin was Justin of Siponto, an Italian philosopher and theologian who lived in the late 11th century and is known for his work on dialectics and logic. Another notable figure was Justin the Martyr, a Christian apologist and saint who lived in the 2nd century AD and is regarded as one of the earliest Christian philosophers.

In the 13th century, the name Justin was associated with the town of Joustain (now known as Justin) in the Languedoc region of southern France. This suggests that the surname may have originated as a locational name, referring to individuals who hailed from this particular town or its surrounding areas.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Justin. One example is the 16th-century French philosopher and theologian Jacques Justin (1505-1580), who played a significant role in the Catholic Counter-Reformation. Another notable bearer was the English poet and translator Justin Huntly McCarthy (1859-1936), known for his works on Irish history and literature.

In the realm of literature, the surname Justin has been immortalized in the works of renowned authors. One such example is the character Justin Martyr in the novel "Quo Vadis" by Henryk Sienkiewicz, which depicts the life of early Christians in ancient Rome.

As the surname Justin spread across Europe and eventually to other parts of the world, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Justine, Justyn, and Justine, reflecting the linguistic and cultural influences of different regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Justin

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!