2000
#5,805
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,455
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.02
Rare Last name
Maxfield
An English locational surname derived from a place name meaning "Mac's field" or "great field."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,766 Americans carry the last name Maxfield. That puts it at #5,668 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 50,658 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Maxfield 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 Maxfield with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.8K
1 in 50,658
Census rank
#5,668
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,900 bearers of the surname Maxfield in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5668th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Maxfield, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Black (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Maxfield
The surname MAXFIELD originates from England and is thought to date back to the 11th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "maesc" meaning "bog" or "marsh" and "feld" meaning "field" or "open land". It likely referred to someone who lived near a marshy or boggy field.
The earliest known record of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled "Maschefelt". This entry refers to a place in Nottinghamshire. Other early spellings include "Maschefeld" and "Maxfeild".
In the 13th century, there are records of a Robert de Maxfield who held lands in Staffordshire. Another early bearer of the name was William de Maxfield, who was mentioned in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1205 in Derbyshire.
The surname MAXFIELD is also associated with several place names in England, such as Maxfield in Cheshire, and Maxfield Farm in Staffordshire. These locations likely derived their names from the same Old English root words as the surname.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was Sir John Maxfield (c. 1480 - 1555), who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1531. Another notable figure was Thomas Maxfield (1590 - 1616), an English Quaker preacher and one of the earliest followers of George Fox.
Other historical figures with the MAXFIELD surname include:
- William Maxfield (1630 - 1698), an English Puritan minister and author.
- Musgrave Maxfield (1667 - 1726), an English barrister and writer.
- Joseph Maxfield (1671 - 1747), an English Quaker leader and writer.
- William Maxfield (1770 - 1848), an English landscape painter.
- John Maxfield (1835 - 1900), an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Nottinghamshire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Maxfield
Among Census respondents with the surname Maxfield, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Black (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Maxfield 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 Maxfield surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.1% · 5,140
- Black or African American5.2% · 304
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 211
- Two or more races2.8% · 167
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 53
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 25
Timeline
Historical Census data for Maxfield
Maxfield 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
#5,786
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,987
+532 bearers (+9.8%)
Per 100,000 2.03
Rank movement Up 19 places
2020
#5,668
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,900
-87 bearers (-1.5%)
Per 100,000 1.97
Rank movement Up 118 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,805 | 5,455 | 2.02 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,786 | 5,987 | 2.03 | +532 bearers (+9.8%) | Up 19 places |
| 2020 | #5,668 | 5,900 | 1.97 | -87 bearers (-1.5%) | Up 118 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 Maxfield 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 | #5,786 | #5,668 | 2.0% |
| Count | 5,987 | 5,900 | -1.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.03 | 1.97 | -2.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Maxfield bearers went from 5,987 to 5,900 (-1.5% change). The surname moved up 118 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,786 to #5,668.
FAQ
Maxfield surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Maxfield?
Name Census estimates that about 6,766 living Americans carry the surname Maxfield. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 50,658 residents.
How common is Maxfield?
Maxfield ranks #5,668 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.97 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,900 people with the surname Maxfield. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,766), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.97 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Maxfield.
Has Maxfield become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Maxfield went from 5,987 recorded bearers to 5,900. That is a decrease of 87 (-1.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,786 to #5,668.
What does the Census say about the background of Maxfield?
Among Census respondents with the surname Maxfield, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Black (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Maxfield in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.1% (5,140 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Maxfield appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.1%), Black (5.2%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Maxfield (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 Maxfield mean?
An English locational surname derived from a place name meaning "Mac's field" or "great field." 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 Maxfield (1.97 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 Maxfield?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.