2000
#121,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Paulhill
An English surname possibly meaning "hill by the church" or formed from a combination of Paul and a geographic name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Paulhill. That puts it at #151,639 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,786,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Paulhill 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
123
1 in 2,786,621
Census rank
#151,639
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
107
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 107 bearers of the surname Paulhill in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 151639th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Paulhill, the largest self-reported group is Black at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Paulhill
The surname PAULHILL is of English origin, tracing its roots back to the medieval period. The name is believed to have originated as a locational surname, derived from a specific place or geographical feature.
One possible explanation for the origin of PAULHILL is that it may have been derived from a combination of the personal name "Paul" and the Old English word "hyll," meaning "hill." This suggests that the name could have initially referred to someone who lived near a hill associated with a person named Paul or a location known as "Paul's Hill."
Alternatively, the name PAULHILL may have evolved from a place name, such as "Paulhill" or a variation thereof, indicating that the earliest bearers of the surname hailed from a particular town or village with that name.
Historical records from the 13th and 14th centuries reveal several early occurrences of the name PAULHILL. One notable example is found in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield, Yorkshire, where a certain Richard de Paulhill is mentioned in 1275.
In the 16th century, the PAULHILL surname appears in various parish registers and tax records across England. One such instance is the baptismal record of Johanne PAULHILL, dated 1567, in the parish of St. Mary Magdalene, Canterbury, Kent.
Among the notable individuals who bore the PAULHILL surname throughout history are:
1. William PAULHILL (c. 1520 - 1586), an English clergyman and theologian who served as the Dean of Lincoln Cathedral from 1561 until his death.
2. Thomas PAULHILL (1615 - 1692), an English merchant and politician who served as the Mayor of Liverpool in 1661.
3. Elizabeth PAULHILL (1745 - 1823), a British author and poet known for her collection of poems titled "The Poetical Works of Elizabeth PAULHILL."
4. Sir George PAULHILL (1789 - 1867), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and later became an Admiral of the Fleet.
5. John PAULHILL (1822 - 1891), an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the PAULHILL Textile Company in New England and contributed significantly to the growth of the textile industry in the region.
While the exact origin and meaning of the PAULHILL surname may be subject to different interpretations, it undoubtedly carries a rich history deeply rooted in the English culture and landscape of bygone eras.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Paulhill
Among Census respondents with the surname Paulhill, the largest self-reported group is Black at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Paulhill 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 Paulhill surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American90.7% · 97
- Two or more races4.7% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Paulhill
Paulhill 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
#127,494
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 134
+3 bearers (+2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 5,714 places
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-27 bearers (-20.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 24,145 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #121,780 | 131 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #127,494 | 134 | 0.05 | +3 bearers (+2.3%) | Down 5,714 places |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | -27 bearers (-20.1%) | Down 24,145 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 Paulhill 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 | #127,494 | #151,639 | -18.9% |
| Count | 134 | 107 | -20.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -28.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Paulhill bearers went from 134 to 107 (-20.1% change). The surname moved down 24,145 positions in the national ranking, going from #127,494 to #151,639.
FAQ
Paulhill surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Paulhill?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Paulhill. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Paulhill?
Paulhill ranks #151,639 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 107 people with the surname Paulhill. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (123), 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 Paulhill.
Has Paulhill become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Paulhill went from 134 recorded bearers to 107. That is a decrease of 27 (-20.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #127,494 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Paulhill?
Among Census respondents with the surname Paulhill, the largest self-reported group is Black at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Paulhill in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.7% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Paulhill appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (90.7%), Two or More Races (4.7%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Paulhill (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 Paulhill mean?
An English surname possibly meaning "hill by the church" or formed from a combination of Paul and a geographic name. 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 Paulhill (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 Paulhill?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Paulhill is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.