2000
#4,023
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.00
Rare Last name
Keeling
Derived from the Old English words "cyning" and "leap," referring to someone living near the king's wood or clearing.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,009 Americans carry the last name Keeling. That puts it at #4,363 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.63 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 38,046 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Keeling 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 Keeling with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.0K
1 in 38,046
Census rank
#4,363
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,856 bearers of the surname Keeling in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.63 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4363rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Keeling, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.1%. The next largest groups are Black (10.5%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Keeling
The surname Keeling is of English origin and dates back to the late medieval period. It is a locational name derived from the village of Keeling in Yorkshire, which was recorded as "Kelinga" in the Domesday Book of 1086. The name is believed to have originated from the Old English words "cyl" meaning a spring or stream, and "ing" meaning a meadow or enclosure.
The earliest known bearer of the name was John de Keeling, who was mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire in 1301. Another early record is that of Roger de Kelyng, who appeared in the Feet of Fines for Suffolk in 1326. The name was also found in various other historical records, such as the Pipe Rolls, Assize Rolls, and the Hundred Rolls.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Keeling family held lands and manors in various parts of Yorkshire, including Rawdon and Calverley. One notable member of the family was William Keeling (c.1585-1665), an English merchant and maritime explorer who served as the first Governor of the East India Company's factory in Bantam, Java.
In the 18th century, John Keeling (1704-1786) was a renowned English mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the calculation of planetary orbits. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1736.
Another notable bearer of the name was Sir Ralph Keeling (1762-1834), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. He was knighted in 1815 for his distinguished service.
In the 19th century, William Keeling (1807-1886) was an English architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. James the Less in Westminster and the Euston Fire Station.
The Keeling surname has also been associated with various place names and locations throughout England, such as Keeling Hall in Norfolk, Keeling Farm in Cheshire, and Keeling Street in London.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Keeling
Among Census respondents with the surname Keeling, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.1%. The next largest groups are Black (10.5%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Keeling 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 Keeling surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.1% · 6,217
- Black or African American10.5% · 823
- Two or more races5.0% · 391
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 306
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 65
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 54
Timeline
Historical Census data for Keeling
Keeling 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
#3,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,938
+838 bearers (+10.3%)
Per 100,000 3.03
Rank movement Up 48 places
2020
#4,363
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,856
-1,082 bearers (-12.1%)
Per 100,000 2.63
Rank movement Down 388 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,023 | 8,100 | 3.00 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,975 | 8,938 | 3.03 | +838 bearers (+10.3%) | Up 48 places |
| 2020 | #4,363 | 7,856 | 2.63 | -1,082 bearers (-12.1%) | Down 388 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 Keeling 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 | #3,975 | #4,363 | -9.8% |
| Count | 8,938 | 7,856 | -12.1% |
| Per 100K | 3.03 | 2.63 | -13.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Keeling bearers went from 8,938 to 7,856 (-12.1% change). The surname moved down 388 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,975 to #4,363.
FAQ
Keeling surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Keeling?
Name Census estimates that about 9,009 living Americans carry the surname Keeling. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 38,046 residents.
How common is Keeling?
Keeling ranks #4,363 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.63 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,856 people with the surname Keeling. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,009), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.63 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.63 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Keeling.
Has Keeling become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Keeling went from 8,938 recorded bearers to 7,856. That is a decrease of 1,082 (-12.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,975 to #4,363.
What does the Census say about the background of Keeling?
Among Census respondents with the surname Keeling, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.1%. The next largest groups are Black (10.5%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Keeling in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.1% (6,217 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Keeling appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.1%), Black (10.5%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Keeling (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 Keeling mean?
Derived from the Old English words "cyning" and "leap," referring to someone living near the king's wood or clearing. 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 Keeling (2.63 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 have the last name Keeling?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Keeling on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.