2000
#16,625
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,588
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.59
Rare Last name
Kenton
A variant spelling of the English place name Kennington, derived from Old English terms meaning "royal manor or estate".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,992 Americans carry the last name Kenton. That puts it at #16,124 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.58 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 172,065 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kenton 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 Kenton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.0K
1 in 172,065
Census rank
#16,124
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,737 bearers of the surname Kenton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.58 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 16124th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kenton, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (9.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kenton
The surname Kenton originated in England and has its roots in the Old English language. The name is derived from the Old English words "cyne" meaning "royal" and "tun" meaning "settlement" or "town". The earliest known spelling of the name was "Cynetun", which likely referred to a settlement or town with royal connections or ownership.
The name Kenton is believed to have originated in the county of Middlesex, located in the south-eastern part of England. The earliest record of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror. The book mentions a place called "Cynetun" in Middlesex, which is believed to be the modern-day Kenton.
In the 12th century, the name Kenton appeared in various records and documents, including the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1194, where a person named William de Kenton was mentioned. The surname also appeared in the Curia Regis Rolls of Essex in 1210, referring to a person named Robert de Kenton.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name Kenton was Sir Thomas Kenton, a prominent English knight who lived during the 14th century. He served as a member of the Privy Council under King Edward III and was involved in various military campaigns during the Hundred Years' War.
Another notable person with the surname Kenton was John Kenton, an English playwright and poet who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He is best known for his work "The Scoffer Scoft", a satirical play published in 1612.
In the 18th century, Simon Kenton, an American frontiersman and explorer, was born in Virginia in 1755. He played a significant role in the exploration and settlement of the Ohio River Valley and became a legendary figure in the American frontier.
The name Kenton has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Kenton in Middlesex, Kenton in Northamptonshire, and Kenton in Devon. These place names likely derived from the Old English word "Cynetun" and reflected the historical settlements or towns associated with the surname.
Throughout history, the surname Kenton has been recorded with various spellings, including Kyneton, Kineton, and Keneton, reflecting regional variations and changes in spelling conventions over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kenton
Among Census respondents with the surname Kenton, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (9.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kenton 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 Kenton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.0% · 1,164
- Black or African American15.0% · 260
- American Indian and Alaska Native9.9% · 172
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 79
- Two or more races3.1% · 53
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kenton
Kenton 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
#18,198
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,529
-59 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 0.52
Rank movement Down 1,573 places
2020
#16,124
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,737
+208 bearers (+13.6%)
Per 100,000 0.58
Rank movement Up 2,074 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,625 | 1,588 | 0.59 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #18,198 | 1,529 | 0.52 | -59 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 1,573 places |
| 2020 | #16,124 | 1,737 | 0.58 | +208 bearers (+13.6%) | Up 2,074 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 Kenton 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 | #18,198 | #16,124 | 11.4% |
| Count | 1,529 | 1,737 | 13.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.52 | 0.58 | 11.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kenton bearers went from 1,529 to 1,737 (+13.6% change). The surname moved up 2,074 positions in the national ranking, going from #18,198 to #16,124.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Kenton
FAQ
Kenton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kenton?
Name Census estimates that about 1,992 living Americans carry the surname Kenton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 172,065 residents.
How common is Kenton?
Kenton ranks #16,124 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.58 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 1,737 people with the surname Kenton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,992), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.58 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.58 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 Kenton.
Has Kenton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kenton went from 1,529 recorded bearers to 1,737. That is an increase of 208 (+13.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #18,198 to #16,124.
What does the Census say about the background of Kenton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kenton, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (9.9%). 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 Kenton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.0% (1,164 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kenton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.0%), Black (15.0%), American Indian/Alaska Native (9.9%). 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 Kenton (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 Kenton mean?
A variant spelling of the English place name Kennington, derived from Old English terms meaning "royal manor or estate". 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 Kenton (0.58 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 Kenton?
You can see how many people are called Kenton on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.