2000
#12,377
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,302
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.85
Rare Last name
Millwood
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a mill in or by a wood.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,719 Americans carry the last name Millwood. That puts it at #12,483 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 126,059 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Millwood 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 Millwood with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 126,059
Census rank
#12,483
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,371 bearers of the surname Millwood in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12483rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Millwood, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Millwood
The surname MILLWOOD is of English origin, first appearing in the medieval period. It is a locational surname, deriving from the various places named Millwood in England, such as those found in Buckinghamshire, Derbyshire, and Staffordshire. The name is composed of the Old English elements "myllen" meaning mill and "wudu" meaning wood, indicating that the original bearers of the name resided near a mill in a wooded area.
Records indicate that the earliest known spelling of the surname was "de Millenwude," found in the Pipe Rolls of Sussex in 1230. This early form highlights the locational origin of the name, with the prefix "de" signifying "from" or "of." As people began to adopt hereditary surnames, those residing near a mill in a wooded region would have taken on the name MILLWOOD or variations like MILWOOD or MILLEWODE.
The MILLWOOD name appeared in various historical documents, including the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, where a William de Milnewode was listed in Oxfordshire. Additionally, a John Milwood was recorded in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1381, further establishing the presence of the surname in different parts of England.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname was Richard Millwood, born in 1564 in Staffordshire, England. He was a prominent landowner and local official in his community. Another notable bearer of the name was Thomas Millwood (1607-1668), a clergyman who served as the Rector of Penshurst in Kent.
In the 17th century, John Millwood (1623-1701) was a respected merchant and alderman in the City of London, while William Millwood (1640-1712) was a renowned botanist and author of "The Gardener's Dictionary," a landmark work on horticulture.
In the realm of literature, the name gained recognition through the works of Samuel Millwood (1725-1799), an English playwright and poet. His most famous work, "The Deserted Village," was a widely acclaimed and influential poem.
Throughout history, the MILLWOOD surname has been associated with various occupations and achievements, from landowners and clergymen to merchants and writers, further enriching its legacy and highlighting its enduring presence in English society.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Millwood
Among Census respondents with the surname Millwood, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Millwood 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 Millwood surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.9% · 1,990
- Black or African American9.6% · 228
- Two or more races4.2% · 100
- Hispanic or Latino1.4% · 34
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Millwood
Millwood 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
#12,444
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,496
+194 bearers (+8.4%)
Per 100,000 0.85
Rank movement Down 67 places
2020
#12,483
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,371
-125 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.79
Rank movement Down 39 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,377 | 2,302 | 0.85 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,444 | 2,496 | 0.85 | +194 bearers (+8.4%) | Down 67 places |
| 2020 | #12,483 | 2,371 | 0.79 | -125 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 39 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 Millwood 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 | #12,444 | #12,483 | -0.3% |
| Count | 2,496 | 2,371 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.85 | 0.79 | -6.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Millwood bearers went from 2,496 to 2,371 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 39 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,444 to #12,483.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Millwood
FAQ
Millwood surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Millwood?
Name Census estimates that about 2,719 living Americans carry the surname Millwood. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 126,059 residents.
How common is Millwood?
Millwood ranks #12,483 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.79 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 2,371 people with the surname Millwood. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,719), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.79 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.79 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 Millwood.
Has Millwood become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Millwood went from 2,496 recorded bearers to 2,371. That is a decrease of 125 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,444 to #12,483.
What does the Census say about the background of Millwood?
Among Census respondents with the surname Millwood, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.9%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Millwood in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.9% (1,990 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Millwood appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.9%), Black (9.6%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Millwood (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 Millwood mean?
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a mill in or by a wood. 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 Millwood (0.79 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 common is the surname Millwood?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Millwood, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.