2000
#13,609
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,046
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.76
Rare Last name
Renwick
From the Old English elements "regen," meaning advice, and "wic," meaning village, thus "village of advice or counsel."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,344 Americans carry the last name Renwick. That puts it at #14,109 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 146,226 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Renwick 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 Renwick with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 146,226
Census rank
#14,109
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,044 bearers of the surname Renwick in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14109th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Renwick, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.1%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Renwick
The surname Renwick is of English origin, derived from the place name Renwick, a village located in Cumbria, in the northwest of England. The name is believed to have originated in the 12th or 13th century.
Renwick is a locative surname, meaning it was originally taken from the name of a place where a person lived or came from. The place name Renwick is thought to be derived from the Old English words "ren" (a stream or brook) and "wic" (a dairy farm or dwelling), suggesting that the original settlement was located near a stream or brook.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Renwick can be found in the Cumbria Feet of Fines, a legal record from the 13th century, which mentions a "John de Renewyk" in 1246. The surname also appears in various other historical records from the region, such as the Court Rolls of the Manor of Inglewood in 1347, where a "William de Rennewyk" is mentioned.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the Renwick surname can be found in various parish records and tax rolls from Cumbria and neighbouring counties. Notable individuals from this period include John Renwick (c. 1662-1688), a Scottish Presbyterian minister and one of the last Covenanter martyrs, who was executed for his beliefs in Edinburgh in 1688.
Another significant figure was James Renwick (1662-1763), a Scottish-American educator and one of the founders of the College of New Jersey, now known as Princeton University. He was born in Moniaive, Dumfriesshire, Scotland, and emigrated to America in 1718.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Renwick surname continued to be found in various records from northern England and Scotland. One notable individual was James Renwick (1790-1863), a Scottish architect and engineer who designed several significant buildings in Edinburgh, including the Royal Institution and the Nicolson Street Church.
Other notable individuals include Henry Brevoort Renwick (1817-1895), an American architect who designed several notable buildings in New York City, including St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Smithsonian Institution's Castle building in Washington, D.C. Another was Isaac Renwick (1836-1889), an American lawyer and politician who served as Mayor of Trenton, New Jersey.
Overall, the surname Renwick has a rich history rooted in the northern English county of Cumbria, with its origins dating back to the medieval period. While the name has spread throughout the English-speaking world, it remains closely tied to its Cumbrian roots and the village from which it originated.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Renwick
Among Census respondents with the surname Renwick, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.1%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Renwick 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 Renwick surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.4% · 1,623
- Black or African American12.1% · 247
- Two or more races4.2% · 86
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 52
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Renwick
Renwick 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
#14,127
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,127
+81 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 518 places
2020
#14,109
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,044
-83 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 18 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,609 | 2,046 | 0.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,127 | 2,127 | 0.72 | +81 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 518 places |
| 2020 | #14,109 | 2,044 | 0.68 | -83 bearers (-3.9%) | Up 18 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 Renwick 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 | #14,127 | #14,109 | 0.1% |
| Count | 2,127 | 2,044 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.72 | 0.68 | -5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Renwick bearers went from 2,127 to 2,044 (-3.9% change). The surname moved up 18 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,127 to #14,109.
FAQ
Renwick surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Renwick?
Name Census estimates that about 2,344 living Americans carry the surname Renwick. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 146,226 residents.
How common is Renwick?
Renwick ranks #14,109 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 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 2,044 people with the surname Renwick. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,344), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 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 Renwick.
Has Renwick become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Renwick went from 2,127 recorded bearers to 2,044. That is a decrease of 83 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,127 to #14,109.
What does the Census say about the background of Renwick?
Among Census respondents with the surname Renwick, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.1%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Renwick in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.4% (1,623 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Renwick appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.4%), Black (12.1%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Renwick (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 Renwick mean?
From the Old English elements "regen," meaning advice, and "wic," meaning village, thus "village of advice or counsel." 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 Renwick (0.68 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 Renwick?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Renwick on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.