2000
#93
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 215,432
First available Census row
Per 100,000 79.86
Common Last name
Russell
An English surname derived from a Norman French nickname meaning "little red one," referring to someone with red hair.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 242,795 Americans carry the last name Russell. That puts it at #108 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 70.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,412 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Russell 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 Russell with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
243K
1 in 1,412
Census rank
#108
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
70.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
212K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 211,729 bearers of the surname Russell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 70.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 108th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Russell, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.9%. The next largest groups are Black (16.5%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Russell
The surname Russell is of Norman French origin, derived from the Old French words "roussel" or "rousseau", meaning "red-haired" or "reddish-brown". This nickname likely described the distinctive physical appearance of an early bearer of the name. The surname originated in Normandy, northern France, in the 11th century.
The Russell name is first recorded in England in the Domesday Book of 1086, which documents a landowner named Ralph Russel who held estates in Yorkshire and Norfolk. This suggests that the Russell family arrived in England shortly after the Norman Conquest of 1066.
During the Middle Ages, the Russell surname spread across England, with various spellings such as Russel, Russelle, and Roussel. Notable early bearers of the name include Sir James Russell (c. 1315-1371), a military commander who fought in the Hundred Years' War, and Sir John Russell (1442-1505), a prominent courtier and politician under King Henry VII.
In the 16th century, the Russell family gained prominence as one of the leading noble families in England. Lord John Russell (1486-1555) was created Earl of Bedford in 1550, and his descendants held the earldom for centuries. The Russell family also produced several notable figures, including William Russell (1639-1683), a Whig politician executed for his involvement in the Rye House Plot against King Charles II, and John Russell (1792-1878), a Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the 19th century.
Other famous individuals with the Russell surname include Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), a British philosopher and Nobel laureate; Bill Russell (1934-2022), an American basketball player and coach; and Kurt Russell (born 1951), an American actor known for films like "Escape from New York" and "The Hateful Eight".
In Scotland, the Russell name is associated with the Clan Russell, a Highland clan that traces its origins to the 12th century. The clan's ancestral lands were in Aberdeenshire, and their chiefly line descends from John Russell, who received a charter for the lands of Leden in 1293.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Russell
Among Census respondents with the surname Russell, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.9%. The next largest groups are Black (16.5%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Russell 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 Russell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.9% · 156,554
- Black or African American16.5% · 35,009
- Two or more races4.4% · 9,312
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 7,367
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 2,049
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 1,438
Timeline
Historical Census data for Russell
Russell 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
#104
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 221,558
+6,126 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 75.11
Rank movement Down 11 places
2020
#108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 211,729
-9,829 bearers (-4.4%)
Per 100,000 70.84
Rank movement Down 4 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #93 | 215,432 | 79.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #104 | 221,558 | 75.11 | +6,126 bearers (+2.8%) | Down 11 places |
| 2020 | #108 | 211,729 | 70.84 | -9,829 bearers (-4.4%) | Down 4 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 Russell 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 | #104 | #108 | -3.8% |
| Count | 221,558 | 211,729 | -4.4% |
| Per 100K | 75.11 | 70.84 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Russell bearers went from 221,558 to 211,729 (-4.4% change). The surname moved down 4 positions in the national ranking, going from #104 to #108.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Russell
FAQ
Russell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Russell?
Name Census estimates that about 242,795 living Americans carry the surname Russell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,412 residents.
How common is Russell?
Russell ranks #108 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 70.84 per 100,000 residents, which is about 71 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 211,729 people with the surname Russell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (242,795), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 70.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 70.84 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 71 of them to have the surname Russell.
Has Russell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Russell went from 221,558 recorded bearers to 211,729. That is a decrease of 9,829 (-4.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #104 to #108.
What does the Census say about the background of Russell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Russell, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.9%. The next largest groups are Black (16.5%) 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 Russell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.9% (156,554 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Russell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.9%), Black (16.5%), 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 Russell (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 Russell mean?
An English surname derived from a Norman French nickname meaning "little red one," referring to someone with red hair. 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 Russell (70.84 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 Russell?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.