2000
#5,247
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.27
Rare Last name
Northcutt
A locational surname referring to someone who lived at the northern cottage or north cut of a settlement.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,747 Americans carry the last name Northcutt. That puts it at #5,682 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 50,801 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Northcutt 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.
Bearers in the US
6.7K
1 in 50,801
Census rank
#5,682
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,884 bearers of the surname Northcutt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5682nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Northcutt, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Northcutt
The surname Northcutt has its origins in England, dating back to the 13th century. It is a locational name, derived from a place named Northcott or Northcote, which likely referred to a cottage or dwelling located in the northern part of a particular area or settlement. The name is believed to have originated in Devonshire or Somerset, counties in the southwestern part of England.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which mention a Richard de Northcote. This suggests that the name was already established by the late 13th century. In the 14th century, the Northcutt spelling variation appears in records, indicating the name's evolution over time.
The Domesday Book, the great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the Northcutt surname. However, it does mention several place names that may have influenced the development of the surname, such as Northcote in Devon and Northcott in Somerset.
Notable individuals with the surname Northcutt throughout history include:
1. Sir John de Northcote (c. 1330-1400), a prominent landowner and knight from Devon, England.
2. William Northcutt (1615-1679), an English colonist who settled in Virginia and served as a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses.
3. John Northcutt (1723-1804), an American Revolutionary War soldier from Virginia.
4. Eliza Northcutt (1808-1887), an American author and poet from Tennessee.
5. Walter Northcutt (1853-1923), a renowned American architect who designed several notable buildings in Texas.
While the Northcutt surname has its roots in England, it eventually spread to other parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, as families migrated and established themselves in new regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Northcutt
Among Census respondents with the surname Northcutt, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Northcutt 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 Northcutt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.1% · 4,890
- Black or African American7.4% · 437
- Two or more races4.0% · 233
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 219
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 55
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 50
Timeline
Historical Census data for Northcutt
Northcutt 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
#5,633
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,170
+58 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 2.09
Rank movement Down 386 places
2020
#5,682
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,884
-286 bearers (-4.6%)
Per 100,000 1.97
Rank movement Down 49 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,247 | 6,112 | 2.27 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,633 | 6,170 | 2.09 | +58 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 386 places |
| 2020 | #5,682 | 5,884 | 1.97 | -286 bearers (-4.6%) | Down 49 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 Northcutt 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 | #5,633 | #5,682 | -0.9% |
| Count | 6,170 | 5,884 | -4.6% |
| Per 100K | 2.09 | 1.97 | -5.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Northcutt bearers went from 6,170 to 5,884 (-4.6% change). The surname moved down 49 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,633 to #5,682.
FAQ
Northcutt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Northcutt?
Name Census estimates that about 6,747 living Americans carry the surname Northcutt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 50,801 residents.
How common is Northcutt?
Northcutt ranks #5,682 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 5,884 people with the surname Northcutt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,747), 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 Northcutt.
Has Northcutt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Northcutt went from 6,170 recorded bearers to 5,884. That is a decrease of 286 (-4.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,633 to #5,682.
What does the Census say about the background of Northcutt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Northcutt, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Northcutt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.1% (4,890 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Northcutt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.1%), Black (7.4%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Northcutt (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 Northcutt mean?
A locational surname referring to someone who lived at the northern cottage or north cut of a settlement. 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 Northcutt (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 common is the surname Northcutt?
Find out how many people are called Northcutt on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.