2000
#1,796
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,350
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.80
Uncommon Last name
Pritchett
An English occupational surname for a seller or maker of wine-related items, derived from Old French "prichet" meaning wine pitcher.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 21,441 Americans carry the last name Pritchett. That puts it at #1,884 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.26 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 15,986 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pritchett 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 Pritchett with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
21K
1 in 15,986
Census rank
#1,884
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
19K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 18,698 bearers of the surname Pritchett in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.26 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1884th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pritchett, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.3%. The next largest groups are Black (25.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pritchett
The surname Pritchett originated in England during the medieval period. It is derived from an occupational name, referring to someone who made or sold arrows or bolts, known as a "pritch" or "pritch-maker." The earliest known spelling of the name was "Prichet," which was recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275.
The name is believed to have originated in the counties of Worcestershire and Gloucestershire, where the arrow-making trade was prevalent. Over time, the name evolved into various spellings such as Prichet, Prickett, Pritchett, and Pritchet.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, where a John Prichet is mentioned. Another early record is the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1380, which lists a William Prichet.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in various historical documents, including the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1428, which mentions a John Prichet, and the Feet of Fines for Suffolk in 1486, where a Thomas Prichet is recorded.
Notable individuals with the surname Pritchett throughout history include:
1. Sir William Pritchett (1642-1705), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Bedfordshire.
2. Henry Pritchett (1857-1939), an American astronomer and educator who served as the president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) from 1900 to 1907.
3. V.S. Pritchett (1900-1997), a British writer and literary critic known for his short stories and memoirs, such as "A Cab at the Door" and "Midnight Oil."
4. Frances Pritchett (1913-2001), an American mathematician and computer scientist who made significant contributions to the development of early computers and programming languages.
5. Robert Pritchett (1828-1907), an English architect and civil engineer who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Royal Albert Hall.
The surname Pritchett has a rich history deeply rooted in the medieval English trades and occupations. While its origins trace back to the arrow-making industry, the name has since been carried by various individuals across different fields and professions throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pritchett
Among Census respondents with the surname Pritchett, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.3%. The next largest groups are Black (25.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Pritchett 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 Pritchett surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.3% · 12,215
- Black or African American25.3% · 4,727
- Two or more races4.4% · 814
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 561
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.5% · 284
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 97
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pritchett
Pritchett 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
#1,856
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,334
+984 bearers (+5.4%)
Per 100,000 6.55
Rank movement Down 60 places
2020
#1,884
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,698
-636 bearers (-3.3%)
Per 100,000 6.26
Rank movement Down 28 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,796 | 18,350 | 6.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,856 | 19,334 | 6.55 | +984 bearers (+5.4%) | Down 60 places |
| 2020 | #1,884 | 18,698 | 6.26 | -636 bearers (-3.3%) | Down 28 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 Pritchett 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 | #1,856 | #1,884 | -1.5% |
| Count | 19,334 | 18,698 | -3.3% |
| Per 100K | 6.55 | 6.26 | -4.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pritchett bearers went from 19,334 to 18,698 (-3.3% change). The surname moved down 28 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,856 to #1,884.
FAQ
Pritchett surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pritchett?
Name Census estimates that about 21,441 living Americans carry the surname Pritchett. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 15,986 residents.
How common is Pritchett?
Pritchett ranks #1,884 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.26 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 18,698 people with the surname Pritchett. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (21,441), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.26 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.26 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Pritchett.
Has Pritchett become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pritchett went from 19,334 recorded bearers to 18,698. That is a decrease of 636 (-3.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,856 to #1,884.
What does the Census say about the background of Pritchett?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pritchett, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.3%. The next largest groups are Black (25.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Pritchett in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.3% (12,215 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pritchett appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.3%), Black (25.3%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Pritchett (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 Pritchett mean?
An English occupational surname for a seller or maker of wine-related items, derived from Old French "prichet" meaning wine pitcher. 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 Pritchett (6.26 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 Pritchett?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Pritchett on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.