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

Kilby, 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 Kilby surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kilby in America

Kilby is the 7534th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kilby surname appeared 4,412 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Kilby.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kilby 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 Kilby

The surname Kilby is of English origin, originating in the northern counties of England during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English words "cyll" meaning a small stream or brook, and "by" meaning a farmstead or settlement. Therefore, the name likely referred to someone who lived near a small stream or brook.

The earliest known record of the name Kilby dates back to the 12th century in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire, where it is spelled as "Killeby." This indicates that the name was already established in this region during the Norman period. In the 13th century, the name appears in various spellings such as "Killebi" and "Killeby" in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire and Warwickshire.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Kilby, who was mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire in 1301. Another early record is that of Thomas Kilby, who was listed in the Feet of Fines for Staffordshire in 1364. These historical records provide evidence of the name's widespread usage and various spellings during the Middle Ages.

In the 16th century, the name Kilby can be found in several parish records, such as the baptism of William Kilby in Fulbeck, Lincolnshire, in 1593. During this period, the name also appeared in association with various place names, such as Kilby in Leicestershire and Kilby Bridge in Yorkshire.

Among notable individuals with the surname Kilby throughout history are:

1. Richard Kilby (c. 1560-1639), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Regius Professor of Hebrew at the University of Oxford.
2. John Kilby (1711-1786), a British civil engineer and surveyor who contributed to the development of canals and waterways in England.
3. Jack Kilby (1923-2005), an American electrical engineer and inventor who is credited with the invention of the integrated circuit, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2000.
4. Clyde L. Kilby (1902-1986), an American author, literary critic, and professor at Wheaton College, known for his works on C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien.
5. Brendan Kilby (born 1981), an Australian rules football player who played for the West Coast Eagles and the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).

The surname Kilby has a rich historical lineage, originating from the northern counties of England and reflecting the geographic features of the areas where its earliest bearers lived. Its evolution over the centuries, with various spelling variations and associations with different locations, is a testament to the enduring legacy of this English surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kilby

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

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

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

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