2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Pylate
A topographic surname denoting someone who lived near a pylon or gate.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Pylate. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pylate 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Pylate in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pylate, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pylate
The surname PYLATE is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "pylat," which referred to a person who lived near a gate or gateway.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Pylatus" and "Pylat." This suggests that the name was already in use by the late 11th century, and may have been brought to England by Norman settlers after the conquest of 1066.
In the 13th century, the name was often spelled as "Pilate," which is reminiscent of the biblical figure Pontius Pilate. However, there is no evidence to suggest a direct connection between the surname and the Roman governor of Judea.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Pylate, a landowner in Oxfordshire who was mentioned in records from the 1200s. Another notable figure was Richard Pylate, a merchant from London who lived in the late 14th century.
In the 15th century, the name was sometimes associated with the village of Pyleton in Shropshire, which may have influenced its spelling and pronunciation. This local connection is reflected in the names of individuals such as William Pylaton, who was recorded in Shropshire in the 1400s.
During the Tudor period, the name gained prominence with the rise of Sir William Pyllaton (c. 1480-1542), a Member of Parliament and supporter of the English Reformation. His descendants continued to use variations of the surname, including Pylat, Pylott, and Pylott-Hart.
Other notable individuals with the PYLATE surname include John Pylat (1590-1663), an English clergyman and author, and Richard Pylot (1609-1677), a Puritan minister who emigrated to New England in the 17th century.
Throughout its history, the PYLATE surname has undergone various spelling changes and regional variations, reflecting the diverse origins and travels of its bearers across England and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pylate
Among Census respondents with the surname Pylate, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Pylate 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 Pylate surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White99.1% · 105
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pylate
Pylate 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
#140,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
+9 bearers (+8.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 400 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-13 bearers (-10.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,182 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #140,157 | 119 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.2%) | Down 400 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-10.9%) | Down 12,182 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 Pylate 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 | #140,157 | #152,339 | -8.7% |
| Count | 119 | 106 | -10.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pylate bearers went from 119 to 106 (-10.9% change). The surname moved down 12,182 positions in the national ranking, going from #140,157 to #152,339.
FAQ
Pylate surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pylate?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Pylate. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Pylate?
Pylate ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Pylate. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Pylate.
Has Pylate become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pylate went from 119 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 13 (-10.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #140,157 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Pylate?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pylate, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%). 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 Pylate in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.1% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pylate appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (99.1%), Two or More Races (0.9%). 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 Pylate (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 Pylate mean?
A topographic surname denoting someone who lived near a pylon or gate. 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 Pylate (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 many people are called Pylate?
See how many Americans have the surname Pylate on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.