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

Porterfield, 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 Porterfield surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Porterfield in America

Porterfield is the 5160th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Porterfield surname appeared 6,780 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Porterfield.

We can also compare 2010 data for Porterfield 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 Porterfield

The surname Porterfield originated in the Scottish Lowlands during the Middle Ages. It is a habitational name derived from a place called Porterfield located near the town of Renfrew in Renfrewshire. The name is believed to have been derived from the Old English words "port" meaning a market town, and "feld" meaning a field or pasture.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Porterfield can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a collection of homage rolls recording the names of Scottish landowners who swore fealty to King Edward I of England. The name appears as "William de Porterfelde" from Renfrewshire.

In the 16th century, the Porterfield family held lands in the parish of Kilbarchan in Renfrewshire. A notable member of the family was John Porterfield (c. 1530-1590), a Scottish clergyman who served as the minister of Kilbarchan Parish Church.

Another prominent individual with the surname Porterfield was Sir William Porterfield (1609-1670), a Scottish soldier and landowner. He fought for the Royalist cause during the English Civil War and was knighted by King Charles II in 1665.

During the 17th century, the Porterfield family also had connections to Ireland. Robert Porterfield (1635-1696) was a Scottish merchant who settled in Dublin and became a wealthy landowner. His son, Boleyn Porterfield (1670-1736), was a member of the Irish House of Commons and held the office of Lord Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer.

In the 18th century, John Porterfield (1700-1784) was a notable Presbyterian minister who served as the moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1768. He was known for his opposition to the proposed union between the Church of Scotland and the Episcopal Church.

The Porterfield name has also been found in various forms throughout history, including Portirfield, Portirvield, and Porterfeild. While the name has Scottish origins, it has since spread to other parts of the world through emigration and migration.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Porterfield

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

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

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

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