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

Kirkpatrick, 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 Kirkpatrick surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kirkpatrick in America

Kirkpatrick is the 1344th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kirkpatrick surname appeared 26,251 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 9 people would have the surname Kirkpatrick.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kirkpatrick 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 Kirkpatrick

The surname Kirkpatrick is of Scottish origin, with the earliest records dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Gaelic words "cill" meaning church and "phadraig" meaning Patrick, referring to the parish church of St. Patrick.

The name is believed to have originated in the county of Dumfriesshire, Scotland, where the Kirkpatrick family held lands and properties since the 12th century. The first recorded mention of the name appears in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which lists several Kirkpatricks who were loyal to King Edward I of England.

One of the earliest and most notable members of the Kirkpatrick family was Sir Roger Kirkpatrick, who is said to have assisted Robert the Bruce in the murder of John Comyn, a rival claimant to the Scottish throne, in 1306. This event is considered a pivotal moment in the Scottish Wars of Independence.

Another prominent figure was Sir Thomas Kirkpatrick, who served as a diplomat and ambassador for King James IV of Scotland in the early 16th century. He played a significant role in negotiating the marriage of James IV to Margaret Tudor, daughter of King Henry VII of England, in 1503.

In the late 16th century, the Kirkpatrick family established themselves in the county of Closeburn, where they built the Closeburn Castle, which still stands today. One of the notable members from this branch was Sir Thomas Kirkpatrick, who was knighted by King Charles I in 1633 for his military service.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, several Kirkpatricks made their mark in various fields, such as Alexander Kirkpatrick (1685-1758), a Scottish merchant and philanthropist who founded the Kirkpatrick Prize at the University of Edinburgh, and James Kirkpatrick (1728-1805), a Scottish soldier and diplomat who served in the East India Company and is known for his controversial marriage to a Muslim noblewoman in India.

Throughout history, the Kirkpatrick name has been associated with nobility, military service, and academic achievements, and it remains a prominent surname in Scotland and other parts of the United Kingdom, as well as in North America, where many Kirkpatricks emigrated in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kirkpatrick

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

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

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

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