2000
#18,077
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,422
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.53
Rare Last name
Romney
A surname likely derived from a placename, possibly a town or region in England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,430 Americans carry the last name Romney. That puts it at #13,691 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 141,051 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Romney 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 Romney with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 141,051
Census rank
#13,691
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,119 bearers of the surname Romney in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13691st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Romney, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Hispanic (6.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Romney
The surname Romney has its origins in the English county of Kent. It is derived from the Old English words 'rumen' meaning wide and 'ey' meaning island or meadow. The name likely referred to someone who lived on or near a wide meadow or island.
The earliest recorded mention of the surname dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Rumeney'. This suggests the name was already well-established in England by the late 11th century.
By the 13th century, variations like 'Romeney', 'Romeneye', and 'Romeney' begin appearing in various historical records and tax rolls from Kent and Sussex. These spellings reflect the surname's evolution over time.
The Romney family can trace their ancestry back to Geoffrey de Romene, born around 1210 in Kent. He was a landowner and one of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname.
Another notable early bearer was John de Romeney, born circa 1275 in Romney Marsh, Kent. He served as a Member of Parliament for Kent in the early 14th century.
During the 16th century, Romney became a more commonly used spelling. William Romney (1508-1584) was a successful merchant and Mayor of Sandwich, Kent in 1569.
In the 17th century, the surname spread beyond Kent as some Romney families migrated to other parts of England and eventually to the American colonies. Miles Romney (1600-1672) was among the earliest settlers in Massachusetts.
Other historically significant individuals include Thomas Romney Robinson (1792-1882), an English banker and politician, and George Romney (1734-1802), a renowned English portrait painter.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Romney
Among Census respondents with the surname Romney, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Hispanic (6.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Romney 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 Romney surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.2% · 1,700
- Black or African American9.5% · 201
- Hispanic or Latino6.8% · 145
- Two or more races2.6% · 56
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Romney
Romney 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
#16,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,755
+333 bearers (+23.4%)
Per 100,000 0.59
Rank movement Up 1,682 places
2020
#13,691
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,119
+364 bearers (+20.7%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Up 2,704 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,077 | 1,422 | 0.53 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #16,395 | 1,755 | 0.59 | +333 bearers (+23.4%) | Up 1,682 places |
| 2020 | #13,691 | 2,119 | 0.71 | +364 bearers (+20.7%) | Up 2,704 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 Romney 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 | #16,395 | #13,691 | 16.5% |
| Count | 1,755 | 2,119 | 20.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.59 | 0.71 | 20.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Romney bearers went from 1,755 to 2,119 (+20.7% change). The surname moved up 2,704 positions in the national ranking, going from #16,395 to #13,691.
FAQ
Romney surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Romney?
Name Census estimates that about 2,430 living Americans carry the surname Romney. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 141,051 residents.
How common is Romney?
Romney ranks #13,691 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 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 2,119 people with the surname Romney. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,430), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 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 Romney.
Has Romney become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Romney went from 1,755 recorded bearers to 2,119. That is an increase of 364 (+20.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #16,395 to #13,691.
What does the Census say about the background of Romney?
Among Census respondents with the surname Romney, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Hispanic (6.8%). 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 Romney in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.2% (1,700 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Romney appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.2%), Black (9.5%), Hispanic (6.8%). 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 Romney (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 Romney mean?
A surname likely derived from a placename, possibly a town or region in England. 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 Romney (0.71 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 Romney?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.