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

Knights, 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 Knights surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Knights in America

Knights is the 14854th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Knights surname appeared 1,994 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 Knights.

We can also compare 2010 data for Knights 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 Knights

The surname KNIGHTS has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. The name is derived from the Old English word 'cniht', which referred to a young servant or attendant, particularly one who served a knight or a person of noble rank.

During the Norman Conquest of England in the 11th century, the term 'knight' took on a more specific meaning, referring to a mounted and armored soldier who served a feudal lord. As a result, the surname KNIGHTS likely originated from individuals who served in this capacity or were associated with the knightly class.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name KNIGHTS can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This document mentions several individuals with variations of the name, such as 'Cnicht' and 'Kniht'.

In the 12th century, a notable figure bearing the name KNIGHTS was Richard de Knichte, a landowner in Gloucestershire mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of 1166. Another early record comes from the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1279, which mentions a Richard le Knyght.

During the 14th century, the surname KNIGHTS started to appear more frequently in historical records. One example is John Knights, a member of Parliament for Sandwich in Kent in 1381. Another is Thomas Knights, a merchant and alderman of London who lived around 1400.

In the 15th century, there are records of a William Knights, a yeoman from Somerset who was involved in the Cornish Rebellion of 1497. Later, in the 16th century, a notable figure was Sir Edward Knights, a Member of Parliament for Gloucestershire who lived from 1538 to 1594.

As the surname spread across England, it also began to be associated with various place names, leading to variations such as Knightsbridge, Knighton, and Knightley. These place names often referred to areas where individuals with the surname KNIGHTS had settled or held land.

Throughout the centuries, the surname KNIGHTS has been borne by numerous individuals of historical significance, including explorers, artists, and military leaders. Some examples include Sir John Knights (1610-1660), an English royalist and Member of Parliament during the English Civil War, and Captain Thomas Knights (1737-1811), a British naval officer who served in the American Revolutionary War.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Knights

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

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

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

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