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

Kenworthy, 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 Kenworthy surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kenworthy in America

Kenworthy is the 9932nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kenworthy surname appeared 3,248 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 Kenworthy.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kenworthy 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 Kenworthy

The surname Kenworthy originated in England and dates back to the late 12th century. It is a locational name derived from the Old English words "cyne" meaning royal or kingly and "worth" meaning an enclosed homestead or settlement. The name likely referred to someone who lived in or near a royal estate or manor.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kenworthy can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1194, where it appears as "Kenwordhi". This suggests that the name was well-established in the Yorkshire region by the late 12th century.

In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms such as "Kenewrthe", "Kenewurthe", and "Kenewurthy" in records from Lancashire and Cheshire. These variants reflect the local dialects and spellings of the time.

The Kenworthy name is also mentioned in the Chartulary of Whalley Abbey, a medieval manuscript from Lancashire, dated around 1300. This indicates that families bearing this surname were present in the area during the early medieval period.

One notable individual with the surname Kenworthy was John Kenworthy, a 16th-century English clergyman who served as the Rector of Blackburn in Lancashire from 1558 to 1595.

In the 17th century, a branch of the Kenworthy family resided in Padiham, Lancashire. Richard Kenworthy (1608-1672) was a prominent landowner and yeoman farmer in the area.

During the English Civil War, Captain Thomas Kenworthy (1620-1685) fought on the Parliamentarian side and was involved in the siege of Lathom House in Lancashire in 1644.

Another individual of note was Samuel Kenworthy (1696-1768), a Quaker minister from Yorkshire who traveled extensively preaching and writing on religious matters.

The Kenworthy surname also has a long association with the town of Oldham in Greater Manchester. One of the earliest recorded Kenworthys in Oldham was John Kenworthy (1724-1799), a successful textile merchant and landowner.

In summary, the surname Kenworthy has its origins in medieval England, particularly in the northern counties of Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cheshire. It has a long and storied history, with various individuals bearing the name making their mark in fields such as religion, military service, and commerce over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kenworthy

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

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

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

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