2000
#12,410
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,294
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.85
Rare Last name
Pinkard
An English occupational surname referring to a keeper or seller of a pinkery, a type of fishing boat.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,572 Americans carry the last name Pinkard. That puts it at #13,069 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 133,264 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pinkard 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Pinkard with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 133,264
Census rank
#13,069
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,243 bearers of the surname Pinkard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13069th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinkard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.3%. The next largest groups are White (44.8%) and Two or More Races (6.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pinkard
The surname PINKARD is of English origin, originating in the early 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "pinc" meaning "hill" or "ridge" and "ard" meaning "a high place or promontory." The combination of these words suggests that the name originally referred to someone who lived on or near a hill or ridge.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Pinchart." This document was a comprehensive record of landholdings and property ownership in England, commissioned by William the Conqueror.
In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various records with slightly different spellings, such as "Pynkard" and "Pynkarde." These variations were likely due to the lack of standardized spelling during that time period.
The earliest known bearer of the PINKARD surname was William Pinkard, born around 1150 in Wiltshire, England. He was a landowner and farmer who lived in the village of Pinkridge, which may have derived its name from the PINKARD family.
Another notable PINKARD was John Pinkard, born in 1325 in Somerset, England. He was a renowned archer who fought in the Hundred Years' War under King Edward III.
In the 16th century, the PINKARD family established themselves in the county of Oxfordshire, where they owned a estate near the village of Pinkridge. One member of this family, Thomas Pinkard (1567-1623), was a successful merchant and landowner.
During the English Civil War in the 17th century, a PINKARD named Robert Pinkard (1605-1672) served as a captain in the Parliamentarian army under Oliver Cromwell.
Another notable bearer of the PINKARD surname was Elizabeth Pinkard (1725-1798), who was a prominent philanthropist and supporter of education in her hometown of Bristol, England.
As the PINKARD family spread throughout England and later to other parts of the world, various place names and locations became associated with the surname, such as Pinkard's Green in Wiltshire and Pinkard's Hill in Somerset.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pinkard
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinkard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.3%. The next largest groups are White (44.8%) and Two or More Races (6.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Pinkard 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 Pinkard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American45.3% · 1,016
- White44.8% · 1,005
- Two or more races6.1% · 136
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 72
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pinkard
Pinkard 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
#12,667
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,440
+146 bearers (+6.4%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 257 places
2020
#13,069
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,243
-197 bearers (-8.1%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 402 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,410 | 2,294 | 0.85 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,667 | 2,440 | 0.83 | +146 bearers (+6.4%) | Down 257 places |
| 2020 | #13,069 | 2,243 | 0.75 | -197 bearers (-8.1%) | Down 402 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 Pinkard 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 | #12,667 | #13,069 | -3.2% |
| Count | 2,440 | 2,243 | -8.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.83 | 0.75 | -9.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pinkard bearers went from 2,440 to 2,243 (-8.1% change). The surname moved down 402 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,667 to #13,069.
FAQ
Pinkard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pinkard?
Name Census estimates that about 2,572 living Americans carry the surname Pinkard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 133,264 residents.
How common is Pinkard?
Pinkard ranks #13,069 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.75 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,243 people with the surname Pinkard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,572), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.75 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Pinkard.
Has Pinkard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pinkard went from 2,440 recorded bearers to 2,243. That is a decrease of 197 (-8.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,667 to #13,069.
What does the Census say about the background of Pinkard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinkard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.3%. The next largest groups are White (44.8%) and Two or More Races (6.1%). 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 Pinkard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 45.3% (1,016 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pinkard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (45.3%), White (44.8%), Two or More Races (6.1%). 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 Pinkard (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 Pinkard mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a keeper or seller of a pinkery, a type of fishing boat. 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 Pinkard (0.75 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 many people are called Pinkard?
If you just want to know how common the surname Pinkard is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.