Penrice last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Penrice

An English surname derived from the Welsh place name Pen-rhuddgoch, meaning "the red headland".

Penrice, 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 Penrice surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Penrice in America

Penrice is the 75799th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Penrice surname appeared 254 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 Penrice.

We can also compare 2010 data for Penrice 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 75799 73931 2.50%
Count 254 244 4.02%
Proportion per 100k 0.09 0.09 0.00%

The history of the last name Penrice

The surname Penrice originated in Cornwall, England, during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Cornish place name "Penryn," which means "promontory" or "headland." The name likely referred to an individual or family who resided near or came from the town of Penryn in Cornwall.

Penryn is an ancient town located on the Penryn River, and records indicate that the name Penrice was in use as early as the 13th century. One of the earliest known references to the surname can be found in the Assize Rolls of Cornwall from 1284, where a person named John de Penrys is mentioned.

The Penrice surname has also been recorded with various spellings over the centuries, including Penrise, Penryce, and Penrys. These variations were common in early English records due to the lack of standardized spelling conventions.

In the 14th century, a notable figure named William de Penrys was listed as a landowner in the Cornish Subsidy Rolls of 1327. This record suggests that the Penrice family held a prominent position in the local community during that time.

Another historically significant individual bearing the Penrice surname was Sir Thomas Penrice (c. 1520-1589), a Welsh politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Haverfordwest in the 16th century.

During the 17th century, a branch of the Penrice family established themselves in Oxfordshire, and one of their descendants, Reverend John Penrice (1667-1727), became a notable clergyman and author. He wrote several religious works, including a renowned treatise titled "A Modest Vindication of the Church of England."

In the 18th century, Richard Penrice (1724-1793) was a prominent lawyer and judge who served as the Chief Justice of the Carmarthen Circuit in Wales.

Another notable figure was Sir Charles Penrice (1796-1873), a Welsh landowner and industrialist who played a significant role in the development of the coal and iron industries in South Wales during the Industrial Revolution.

Throughout its history, the Penrice surname has been associated with various locations and families across Cornwall, Wales, and parts of England, reflecting the diverse origins and migrations of those who bore this name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Penrice

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

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 Penrice was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 26.38% 67
Non-Hispanic Black Only 64.17% 163
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.97% 5
Hispanic Origin 6.69% 17

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 Penrice has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 26.38% 24.59% 7.02%
Black 64.17% 70.90% -9.97%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% 0.00% (S)%
Two or More Races 1.97% (S)% (S)%
Hispanic 6.69% 2.87% 79.92%

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

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Penrice last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/penrice-surname-popularity/.

"Penrice last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/penrice-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Penrice last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/penrice-surname-popularity/.

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