2000
#4,666
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,955
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.58
Rare Last name
Rigsby
Derived from a place name meaning "ridge village" or "village on a ridge" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,863 Americans carry the last name Rigsby. That puts it at #4,963 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.29 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 43,591 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rigsby 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 Rigsby with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.9K
1 in 43,591
Census rank
#4,963
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,857 bearers of the surname Rigsby in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.29 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4963rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigsby, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.8%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rigsby
The surname Rigsby originates from England and dates back to the early medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "hrycg" meaning ridge and "by" meaning village or settlement, essentially translating to "ridge village" or "village on the ridge."
This toponymic surname likely originated in areas with prominent ridges or hill settlements, potentially in regions like Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, or Derbyshire. Similar spelling variations from historical records include Riggesbie, Rigesbie, and Riggsby.
One of the earliest known references to the name Rigsby can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Rigesbie" in connection with lands in Lincolnshire. This suggests that the name was already established by the late 11th century.
Notable individuals with the surname Rigsby include:
1. Sir Edward Rigsby (c. 1350-1425), a prominent English landowner and knight who served in the Hundred Years' War under King Henry V.
2. John Rigsby (1590-1662), an English Puritan clergyman and author who published several religious works during the 17th century.
3. Mary Rigsby (1702-1778), an English poet and playwright whose works gained popularity in literary circles of the 18th century.
4. William Rigsby (1804-1879), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and later became a renowned explorer and cartographer.
5. Elizabeth Rigsby (1856-1932), an American educator and suffragist who played a significant role in the women's rights movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The surname Rigsby has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Rigsby in Lincolnshire, Rigsby Hill in Yorkshire, and Rigsby Wold in the East Riding of Yorkshire, further reinforcing its toponymic origins and connection to geographical features like ridges and hills.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rigsby
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigsby, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.8%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Rigsby 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 Rigsby surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.8% · 5,611
- Black or African American10.2% · 696
- Two or more races4.9% · 338
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 147
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 38
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 27
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rigsby
Rigsby 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
#4,941
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,124
+169 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 2.42
Rank movement Down 275 places
2020
#4,963
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,857
-267 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 2.29
Rank movement Down 22 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,666 | 6,955 | 2.58 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,941 | 7,124 | 2.42 | +169 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 275 places |
| 2020 | #4,963 | 6,857 | 2.29 | -267 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 22 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 Rigsby 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 | #4,941 | #4,963 | -0.4% |
| Count | 7,124 | 6,857 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 2.42 | 2.29 | -5.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rigsby bearers went from 7,124 to 6,857 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 22 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,941 to #4,963.
FAQ
Rigsby surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rigsby?
Name Census estimates that about 7,863 living Americans carry the surname Rigsby. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 43,591 residents.
How common is Rigsby?
Rigsby ranks #4,963 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.29 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,857 people with the surname Rigsby. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,863), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.29 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.29 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Rigsby.
Has Rigsby become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rigsby went from 7,124 recorded bearers to 6,857. That is a decrease of 267 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,941 to #4,963.
What does the Census say about the background of Rigsby?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigsby, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.8%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Rigsby in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.8% (5,611 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rigsby appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.8%), Black (10.2%), Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Rigsby (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 Rigsby mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "ridge village" or "village on a ridge" in Old English. 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 Rigsby (2.29 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 have the surname Rigsby?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.