2000
#23,428
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,012
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.38
Rare Last name
Minson
An English surname derived from the Middle English word "minsum," meaning "diligent" or "industrious."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,354 Americans carry the last name Minson. That puts it at #22,347 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.40 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 253,142 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Minson 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 Minson with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.4K
1 in 253,142
Census rank
#22,347
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,181 bearers of the surname Minson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.40 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 22347th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Minson, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Two or More Races (5.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Minson
The surname Minson has its origins in England, emerging in the medieval period. It is believed to be a variant of the more common surname Munson, which derived from the Old English personal name Mund or Munt, meaning "protector" or "hand." The suffix "-son" was commonly added to denote "son of," indicating that the name originally referred to the son of someone named Mund or Munt.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Minson can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire from 1195, where a person named Willelmus filius Munsonis (William, son of Munson) is mentioned. This suggests that the Minson variant was already in use by the late 12th century.
The Minson surname has been associated with various place names in England, such as Minstone in Shropshire and Munstone in Kent. These place names likely derived from the same Old English root as the personal name Mund, reflecting the connection between the surname and its geographical origins.
Historically, the name Minson has been represented in various spellings, including Minshon, Minchen, and Minshin, reflecting the fluidity of surname spellings in the Middle Ages. Some notable individuals who bore this surname include:
1. John Minson (c. 1595 - 1669), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Thetford, Norfolk.
2. William Minson (c. 1665 - 1722), an English writer and author of "An Essay on Sobriety," published in 1694.
3. Thomas Minson (c. 1720 - 1789), a prominent English landowner and magistrate in Kent.
4. Elizabeth Minson (c. 1770 - 1855), an English diarist and writer known for her detailed accounts of life in rural Sussex.
5. James Minson (1838 - 1914), a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London and the surrounding areas.
The Minson surname, with its roots in Old English and connections to various place names, has left a lasting mark on the historical records of England, reflecting the rich tapestry of British surnames and their origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Minson
Among Census respondents with the surname Minson, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Two or More Races (5.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Minson 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 Minson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.8% · 931
- Black or African American9.0% · 106
- Two or more races5.9% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 44
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Minson
Minson 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
#23,604
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,075
+63 bearers (+6.2%)
Per 100,000 0.36
Rank movement Down 176 places
2020
#22,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,181
+106 bearers (+9.9%)
Per 100,000 0.40
Rank movement Up 1,257 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #23,428 | 1,012 | 0.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #23,604 | 1,075 | 0.36 | +63 bearers (+6.2%) | Down 176 places |
| 2020 | #22,347 | 1,181 | 0.40 | +106 bearers (+9.9%) | Up 1,257 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 Minson 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 | #23,604 | #22,347 | 5.3% |
| Count | 1,075 | 1,181 | 9.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.36 | 0.40 | 9.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Minson bearers went from 1,075 to 1,181 (+9.9% change). The surname moved up 1,257 positions in the national ranking, going from #23,604 to #22,347.
FAQ
Minson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Minson?
Name Census estimates that about 1,354 living Americans carry the surname Minson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 253,142 residents.
How common is Minson?
Minson ranks #22,347 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.40 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,181 people with the surname Minson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,354), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.4 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.40 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Minson.
Has Minson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Minson went from 1,075 recorded bearers to 1,181. That is an increase of 106 (+9.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #23,604 to #22,347.
What does the Census say about the background of Minson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Minson, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Two or More Races (5.9%). 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 Minson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.8% (931 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Minson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.8%), Black (9.0%), Two or More Races (5.9%). 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 Minson (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 Minson mean?
An English surname derived from the Middle English word "minsum," meaning "diligent" or "industrious." 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 Minson (0.40 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 Minson?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.