2000
#127,186
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Nutwell
Derived from a place name referring to someone residing near a hazel tree grove.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Nutwell. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Nutwell 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Nutwell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Nutwell, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Nutwell
The surname NUTWELL originated in England during the late medieval period, deriving from the Old English words "hnutu" meaning "nut" and "well" meaning a spring or source of water. This suggests the name was likely first associated with someone who lived near a nut tree or grove close to a well or natural spring.
Early records of the name can be traced back to the 13th century in counties such as Gloucestershire and Somerset. Variations in spelling include Nuttewell, Nutewell, and Nuttwell, reflecting the inconsistencies in written English at the time. The NUTWELL surname is also closely linked to the place name of Nailswell, a village in Gloucestershire.
One of the earliest documented examples of the name is found in the Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1327, which lists a John de Nuttewell. The Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1334 for Somerset also mention a Thomas Nutewell, indicating the surname's presence in the region during that era.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in the Paston Letters, a collection of correspondence between members of the influential Paston family. These letters reference a John Nutwell who was involved in legal matters related to the family's estates.
Notable individuals bearing the NUTWELL surname throughout history include:
1. Richard Nutwell (c. 1529 - 1592), an English churchman who served as the Archdeacon of Suffolk from 1580 until his death.
2. Thomas Nutwell (c. 1570 - 1645), a English clergyman and academic who held the position of Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge from 1622 to 1645.
3. William Nutwell (c. 1610 - 1683), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Bath in the Cavalier Parliament from 1661 to 1679.
4. John Nutwell (c. 1650 - 1711), an English merchant and landowner from Gloucestershire who amassed a substantial fortune through trade with the American colonies.
5. Elizabeth Nutwell (1679 - 1756), a renowned British botanist and horticulturist who contributed significantly to the study and cultivation of exotic plants in the early 18th century.
While the NUTWELL surname may have originated from a specific location or geographical feature, it has since spread throughout England and beyond, carried by families and individuals who have made their mark across various professions and fields over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nutwell
Among Census respondents with the surname Nutwell, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Nutwell 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 Nutwell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.7% · 100
- Two or more races5.3% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.4% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Nutwell
Nutwell 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
#129,825
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
+7 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,639 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-17 bearers (-13.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,670 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,186 | 124 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #129,825 | 131 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+5.6%) | Down 2,639 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -17 bearers (-13.0%) | Down 16,670 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 Nutwell 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 | #129,825 | #146,495 | -12.8% |
| Count | 131 | 114 | -13.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Nutwell bearers went from 131 to 114 (-13.0% change). The surname moved down 16,670 positions in the national ranking, going from #129,825 to #146,495.
FAQ
Nutwell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Nutwell?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Nutwell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Nutwell?
Nutwell ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 114 people with the surname Nutwell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Nutwell.
Has Nutwell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Nutwell went from 131 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 17 (-13.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #129,825 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Nutwell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Nutwell, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%). 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 Nutwell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.7% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Nutwell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.7%), Two or More Races (5.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%). 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 Nutwell (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 Nutwell mean?
Derived from a place name referring to someone residing near a hazel tree grove. 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 Nutwell (0.04 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 Nutwell?
See how many people are called Nutwell on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.