2000
#1,746
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,781
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.96
Uncommon Last name
Layton
From a place name derived from Old English meaning "settlement by the watercourse" or "town by the stream."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 21,224 Americans carry the last name Layton. That puts it at #1,905 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 16,149 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Layton 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 Layton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
21K
1 in 16,149
Census rank
#1,905
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
19K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 18,508 bearers of the surname Layton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1905th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Layton, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) and Hispanic (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Layton
The surname Layton is of English origin and can be traced back to the medieval era. It is a habitation surname, derived from the Old English words 'leasowe' meaning meadow or pasture and 'tun' meaning enclosure or settlement. This suggests that the earliest bearers of the name likely hailed from a place called Layton, meaning the settlement by the meadow.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled as 'Laitone'. This document, commissioned by William the Conqueror, recorded landholdings across England and serves as a valuable resource for tracing the origins of surnames.
The name Layton can also be found in various medieval records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from the 12th century, where it is spelled 'Laiton'. These rolls were financial accounts kept by the Exchequer and provide insights into the distribution and prevalence of surnames during that period.
One notable figure bearing the name Layton was Sir William Layton (c. 1460-1518), a courtier and diplomat during the reigns of Henry VII and Henry VIII. He served as the Governor of Guernsey and played a crucial role in negotiating the marriage between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon.
Another prominent individual was Richard Layton (c. 1500-1544), an English clergyman and visitor during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII. He was instrumental in suppressing religious houses and confiscating their assets for the Crown.
In the 17th century, Thomas Layton (1630-1706) was an English clergyman and non-juror who refused to swear allegiance to William III and Mary II after the Glorious Revolution of 1688.
The name Layton can also be traced to various place names in England, such as Layton in Lancashire, Layton in Yorkshire, and Layton in Northamptonshire. These locations likely derived their names from the Old English words mentioned earlier, further reinforcing the connection between the surname and its geographical origins.
Finally, John Layton (1749-1809) was a notable English naturalist and writer who published works on ornithology and natural history, contributing to the growing interest in these fields during the 18th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Layton
Among Census respondents with the surname Layton, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) and Hispanic (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Layton 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 Layton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.8% · 15,691
- Black or African American6.1% · 1,120
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 795
- Two or more races3.8% · 695
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 105
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 102
Timeline
Historical Census data for Layton
Layton 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
#1,836
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,504
+723 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 6.61
Rank movement Down 90 places
2020
#1,905
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,508
-996 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 6.19
Rank movement Down 69 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,746 | 18,781 | 6.96 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,836 | 19,504 | 6.61 | +723 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 90 places |
| 2020 | #1,905 | 18,508 | 6.19 | -996 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 69 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 Layton 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 | #1,836 | #1,905 | -3.8% |
| Count | 19,504 | 18,508 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 6.61 | 6.19 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Layton bearers went from 19,504 to 18,508 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 69 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,836 to #1,905.
FAQ
Layton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Layton?
Name Census estimates that about 21,224 living Americans carry the surname Layton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 16,149 residents.
How common is Layton?
Layton ranks #1,905 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.19 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 18,508 people with the surname Layton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (21,224), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.19 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Layton.
Has Layton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Layton went from 19,504 recorded bearers to 18,508. That is a decrease of 996 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,836 to #1,905.
What does the Census say about the background of Layton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Layton, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) and Hispanic (4.3%). 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 Layton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.8% (15,691 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Layton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.8%), Black (6.1%), Hispanic (4.3%). 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 Layton (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 Layton mean?
From a place name derived from Old English meaning "settlement by the watercourse" or "town by the stream." 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 Layton (6.19 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 people are called Layton?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Layton on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.