2000
#1,288
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 25,159
First available Census row
Per 100,000 9.33
Uncommon Last name
Manley
Derived from a place name or a nickname referring to a person from Maine-et-Loire, France.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 27,080 Americans carry the last name Manley. That puts it at #1,472 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.90 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 12,657 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Manley 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 Manley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
27K
1 in 12,657
Census rank
#1,472
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
24K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 23,615 bearers of the surname Manley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.90 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1472nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Manley, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (14.8%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Manley
The surname Manley originates from England and dates back to the 11th century. It is derived from the Old English words "mann" meaning man and "leah" meaning a meadow or clearing in a forest. Thus, the name Manley refers to a person who lived near a meadow or clearing.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Manley can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears in various spellings such as Manleye, Manlie, and Manlye.
During the Middle Ages, the Manley family held lands in several counties, including Cheshire, Staffordshire, and Derbyshire. One notable member of the family was Sir John Manley (1534-1611), who served as a Member of Parliament for Newcastle-under-Lyme in 1586.
In the 17th century, the Manley family gained prominence in Cheshire, where they owned the estate of Manley Hall. Sir Roger Manley (1665-1728) was a prominent lawyer and politician who served as Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer.
Another notable figure was Mary de la Rivière Manley (1672-1724), an English writer and playwright who was a prominent figure in the literary circles of her time. She is best known for her satirical works and her involvement in the literary feud between the Whigs and Tories.
In the 18th century, John Manley (1733-1803) was a British naval officer who served in the American Revolutionary War and rose to the rank of Admiral. He was also a Member of Parliament for Newtown on the Isle of Wight.
The Manley surname can also be traced to the village of Manley in Cheshire, which further reinforces the connection between the name and the geographical location. Several other places in England, such as Manley Bank in Staffordshire and Manley Common in Devon, bear the name, indicating the widespread distribution of the family.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Manley
Among Census respondents with the surname Manley, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (14.8%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Manley 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 Manley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.5% · 17,839
- Black or African American14.8% · 3,487
- Two or more races4.7% · 1,120
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 824
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 200
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 145
Timeline
Historical Census data for Manley
Manley 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
#1,413
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 25,136
-23 bearers (-0.1%)
Per 100,000 8.52
Rank movement Down 125 places
2020
#1,472
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,615
-1,521 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 7.90
Rank movement Down 59 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,288 | 25,159 | 9.33 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,413 | 25,136 | 8.52 | -23 bearers (-0.1%) | Down 125 places |
| 2020 | #1,472 | 23,615 | 7.90 | -1,521 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 59 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 Manley 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 | #1,413 | #1,472 | -4.2% |
| Count | 25,136 | 23,615 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 8.52 | 7.90 | -7.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Manley bearers went from 25,136 to 23,615 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 59 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,413 to #1,472.
FAQ
Manley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Manley?
Name Census estimates that about 27,080 living Americans carry the surname Manley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 12,657 residents.
How common is Manley?
Manley ranks #1,472 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.90 per 100,000 residents, which is about 8 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 23,615 people with the surname Manley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (27,080), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.9 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.90 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 8 of them to have the surname Manley.
Has Manley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Manley went from 25,136 recorded bearers to 23,615. That is a decrease of 1,521 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,413 to #1,472.
What does the Census say about the background of Manley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Manley, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.5%. The next largest groups are Black (14.8%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Manley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.5% (17,839 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Manley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.5%), Black (14.8%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Manley (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 Manley mean?
Derived from a place name or a nickname referring to a person from Maine-et-Loire, France. 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 Manley (7.90 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 have the surname Manley?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.