2000
#16,281
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,630
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.60
Rare Last name
Machin
An English occupational surname for a stonemason or a maker of machinery.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,163 Americans carry the last name Machin. That puts it at #15,037 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.63 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 158,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Machin 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 Machin with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.2K
1 in 158,462
Census rank
#15,037
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,886 bearers of the surname Machin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.63 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15037th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Machin, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 58.0%. The next largest groups are White (38.7%) and Two or More Races (1.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Machin
The surname MACHIN is believed to have originated in France, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 12th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Old French word "machon," meaning "mason" or "stoneworker." This suggests that the MACHIN name may have been an occupational surname, given to those who worked as masons or stonemasons.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the MACHIN name can be found in the Cartulaire de l'abbaye de Conches, a collection of medieval charters from the Abbey of Conches in Normandy, France. In this document, a man named Radulfus Machin is mentioned in the year 1188.
As the name spread throughout France, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Machon, Machun, and Machin. These variations likely reflected regional dialects and the inconsistencies in spelling during the Middle Ages.
In the 13th century, the MACHIN name appears in the records of the city of Paris. A document from 1269 mentions a man named Jehan Machin, who was a resident of the city.
During the 14th century, the MACHIN name gained prominence in the region of Champagne, France. Historical records from this period mention several individuals bearing the name, including Guillaume Machin, who was born in Reims around 1330.
One notable figure in the history of the MACHIN name is Robert Machin, a French philosopher and theologian who lived in the 15th century. Born in Normandy around 1450, Machin was a prominent scholar at the University of Paris and authored several works on logic and philosophy.
Another individual of note is Jacques Machin, a 16th-century French poet and playwright from the city of Caen. Born in 1540, Machin gained recognition for his satirical works and plays, which often criticized social and political issues of his time.
In the 17th century, the MACHIN name spread to other parts of Europe, including England and Scotland. One significant figure from this period is John Machin, an English mathematician and astronomer who was born in 1686. Machin is best known for developing a mathematical formula, now known as Machin's formula, which is used to calculate the value of pi (π) to a high degree of accuracy.
The MACHIN name also has a connection to the world of literature through the 18th-century French author and playwright Jean-Baptiste Machin. Born in Reims in 1725, Machin wrote several plays and works of fiction, including the novel "Les Aventures de Monsieur Robert Chevalier, dit de Beauchêne" (The Adventures of Mr. Robert Chevalier, known as Beauchêne).
Throughout its long history, the MACHIN surname has been associated with various occupations, from masons and stoneworkers to scholars, poets, and mathematicians. While the name may have originated as an occupational surname, it has since become a part of the cultural heritage of several countries, particularly France, England, and Scotland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Machin
Among Census respondents with the surname Machin, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 58.0%. The next largest groups are White (38.7%) and Two or More Races (1.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Machin 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 Machin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino58.0% · 1,094
- White38.7% · 730
- Two or more races1.6% · 31
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 12
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 10
- Black or African American0.5% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Machin
Machin 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
#14,991
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,971
+341 bearers (+20.9%)
Per 100,000 0.67
Rank movement Up 1,290 places
2020
#15,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,886
-85 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Down 46 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,281 | 1,630 | 0.60 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,991 | 1,971 | 0.67 | +341 bearers (+20.9%) | Up 1,290 places |
| 2020 | #15,037 | 1,886 | 0.63 | -85 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 46 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 Machin 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 | #14,991 | #15,037 | -0.3% |
| Count | 1,971 | 1,886 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.67 | 0.63 | -5.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Machin bearers went from 1,971 to 1,886 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 46 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,991 to #15,037.
FAQ
Machin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Machin?
Name Census estimates that about 2,163 living Americans carry the surname Machin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 158,462 residents.
How common is Machin?
Machin ranks #15,037 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.63 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 1,886 people with the surname Machin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,163), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.63 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.63 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 Machin.
Has Machin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Machin went from 1,971 recorded bearers to 1,886. That is a decrease of 85 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,991 to #15,037.
What does the Census say about the background of Machin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Machin, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 58.0%. The next largest groups are White (38.7%) and Two or More Races (1.6%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Machin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.0% (1,094 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Machin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (58.0%), White (38.7%), Two or More Races (1.6%). 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 Machin (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 Machin mean?
An English occupational surname for a stonemason or a maker of machinery. 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 Machin (0.63 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 share the surname Machin?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.