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

Parfitt, 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 Parfitt surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Parfitt in America

Parfitt is the 23634th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Parfitt surname appeared 1,073 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 Parfitt.

We can also compare 2010 data for Parfitt 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 Parfitt

The surname Parfitt is of English origin and dates back to the late 12th century. It is a locational name derived from the Old French words "par" meaning "by" and "fit" meaning "made" or "done", referring to someone who lived near a man-made landmark or boundary.

The name is first recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1196, where one William Parfitt is mentioned. It is also found in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273, where it appears as "Perfet". The variant spelling "Parfitt" became more common during the 16th and 17th centuries.

The earliest known bearer of the name was Sir John Parfitt, a knight who fought in the Battle of Crecy in 1346 during the Hundred Years' War. Another notable figure was William Parfitt (c. 1500 - 1571), a wealthy merchant from Bristol who funded the construction of several churches and almshouses in the city.

In the 17th century, the name was associated with the village of Parfitt in Wiltshire, which may have been named after an early settler with the same surname. One of the earliest records from this area is that of Thomas Parfitt (1622 - 1692), a yeoman farmer who owned a large estate in the village.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, the name Parfitt became more widespread across southern England, particularly in the counties of Somerset, Devon, and Dorset. Notable bearers from this period include John Parfitt (1775 - 1849), a renowned landscape painter from Bath, and Reverend William Parfitt (1836 - 1910), a Church of England clergyman and author who served as the Vicar of Redhill in Surrey.

Other individuals of note with the surname Parfitt include Ethel Parfitt (1872 - 1950), a British stage actress who appeared in numerous West End productions, and Sir Clarence Parfitt (1891 - 1971), a British diplomat who served as the Ambassador to Brazil and Spain during the mid-20th century.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Parfitt

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

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

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

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