2000
#14,890
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,823
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.68
Rare Last name
Knights
An occupational surname for a knight or a military servant.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,595 Americans carry the last name Knights. That puts it at #12,976 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 132,083 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Knights 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 Knights with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 132,083
Census rank
#12,976
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,263 bearers of the surname Knights in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12976th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Knights, the largest self-reported group is White at 57.6%. The next largest groups are Black (33.2%) and Hispanic (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Knights
Among Census respondents with the surname Knights, the largest self-reported group is White at 57.6%. The next largest groups are Black (33.2%) and Hispanic (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Knights 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 Knights surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White57.6% · 1,304
- Black or African American33.2% · 752
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 113
- Two or more races3.1% · 70
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Knights
Knights 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
#14,854
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,994
+171 bearers (+9.4%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 36 places
2020
#12,976
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,263
+269 bearers (+13.5%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Up 1,878 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,890 | 1,823 | 0.68 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,854 | 1,994 | 0.68 | +171 bearers (+9.4%) | Up 36 places |
| 2020 | #12,976 | 2,263 | 0.76 | +269 bearers (+13.5%) | Up 1,878 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 Knights 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 | #14,854 | #12,976 | 12.6% |
| Count | 1,994 | 2,263 | 13.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.68 | 0.76 | 11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Knights bearers went from 1,994 to 2,263 (+13.5% change). The surname moved up 1,878 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,854 to #12,976.
FAQ
Knights surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Knights?
Name Census estimates that about 2,595 living Americans carry the surname Knights. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 132,083 residents.
How common is Knights?
Knights ranks #12,976 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 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 2,263 people with the surname Knights. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,595), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 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 Knights.
Has Knights become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Knights went from 1,994 recorded bearers to 2,263. That is an increase of 269 (+13.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,854 to #12,976.
What does the Census say about the background of Knights?
Among Census respondents with the surname Knights, the largest self-reported group is White at 57.6%. The next largest groups are Black (33.2%) and Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Knights in the 2020 Census, accounting for 57.6% (1,304 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Knights appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (57.6%), Black (33.2%), Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Knights (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 Knights mean?
An occupational surname for a knight or a military servant. 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 Knights (0.76 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 Americans have the surname Knights?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.