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

Norfolk, 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 Norfolk surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Norfolk in America

Norfolk is the 25902nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Norfolk surname appeared 949 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Norfolk.

We can also compare 2010 data for Norfolk 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 Norfolk

The surname Norfolk originated in the county of Norfolk in England. It is a locational surname, derived from the place name Norfolk, which itself comes from the Old English words "Norþ" meaning north and "folc" meaning people or folk. The county was named for being the northernmost region of the Kingdom of East Anglia during the Anglo-Saxon period.

The earliest recorded mention of the Norfolk surname dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appeared as "de Norfolc". This Latin form indicated someone from the county of Norfolk. In the 12th century, the surname was often spelled as "de Norfolchia" or "de Northfolc".

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Norfolk surname was Roger de Norfolc, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1176. Another early bearer of the name was William de Norfolc, who was recorded in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1198.

In the 13th century, the Norfolk surname began to be spelled more consistently as "Norfolk" or "Norffolk". A notable individual from this period was Sir John Norfolk, a knight who fought in the Scottish Wars of Independence under King Edward I of England in the late 13th century.

During the 14th and 15th centuries, the Norfolk surname was well-established in various regions of England, particularly in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex. One prominent bearer of the name was John Norfolk, who served as the Mayor of Norwich, the county town of Norfolk, in 1436.

In the 16th century, the Norfolk surname gained further prominence with the rise of the Howard family, who were Dukes of Norfolk. The most famous member of this family was Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk (1473-1554), who played a significant role in the English Reformation and was briefly imprisoned in the Tower of London for his Catholic beliefs.

Other notable individuals with the Norfolk surname throughout history include:

1. Sir Roger de Norfolk (12th century), a knight and landowner in Norfolk.
2. Sir John Norfolk (c. 1260-1330), a knight who fought in the Scottish Wars of Independence.
3. Thomas Norfolk (c. 1400-1475), a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of Norwich.
4. Henry Norfolk (c. 1510-1580), an English Protestant reformer and author.
5. Edward Norfolk (1701-1786), a British naval officer and colonial governor of Virginia.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Norfolk

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

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

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

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