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

Magness, 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 Magness surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Magness in America

Magness is the 10555th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Magness surname appeared 3,036 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 Magness.

We can also compare 2010 data for Magness 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 Magness

The surname Magness originated in England, and it is believed to have emerged in the late 13th century or early 14th century. It is derived from the Old English words "mægen" meaning "strength" or "force" and "nesse" meaning "headland" or "promontory." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a person who lived near a prominent or strong headland.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Magness can be found in the Feet of Fines records for the county of Lincolnshire, dated 1327, which mentions a John Magneys. In the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire from 1327, there is a reference to a Robert Magnesse.

The Magness surname was also present in various medieval records, such as the Poll Tax returns of Yorkshire from 1379, which lists a William Magnays. Additionally, the Hearth Tax returns for Lancashire in 1662 include a Robert Magnes.

Some notable individuals bearing the Magness surname throughout history include:

1. Sir John Magness (c. 1450-1525), an English landowner and member of Parliament for Gloucestershire during the reign of Henry VIII.
2. Elizabeth Magness (1580-1642), an English Puritan settler in colonial Massachusetts and one of the founders of the town of Ipswich.
3. Thomas Magness (1637-1712), an English-born farmer and landowner in colonial Virginia, known for his involvement in the Bacon's Rebellion of 1676.
4. Richard Magness (1725-1798), a Scottish-born merchant and ship captain who settled in Charleston, South Carolina, and played a role in the American Revolutionary War.
5. Mary Magness (1822-1892), an influential educator and advocate for women's rights in Kentucky, who established several schools for girls in the mid-19th century.

While the Magness surname has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, as a result of migration and settlement patterns over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Magness

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!