2000
#12,542
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,266
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Salsbury
Derived from a place name meaning "stronghold of Sealfa," a personal name of Old English origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,238 Americans carry the last name Salsbury. That puts it at #14,640 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.65 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 153,152 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Salsbury 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 Salsbury with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.2K
1 in 153,152
Census rank
#14,640
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,952 bearers of the surname Salsbury in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.65 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14640th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Salsbury, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Salsbury
The surname Salsbury has its origins in England, tracing back to the medieval period. It is a locational name, derived from the town of Salisbury in Wiltshire, which was originally known as "Saresberie" in Old English. The name is believed to have originated from the Celtic word "sorviodunum," meaning "marshy hill fort."
The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Sarisberie" and "Saresberie." This important historical record indicates that the name was already well-established in the region during the Norman Conquest.
In the 13th century, a notable bearer of the name was William de Sarisberia, also known as William of Salisbury, who served as the Bishop of Salisbury from 1217 to 1226. His writings on philosophy and theology were influential during that period.
Another prominent figure was John of Salisbury (c. 1120-1180), a renowned English philosopher, writer, and scholar who served as the Bishop of Chartres in France. His works, such as "Metalogicon" and "Policraticus," were highly regarded in the Middle Ages.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various spellings, including Salesbury, Salisburi, and Salusbury. One notable figure from this era was John Salusbury (c. 1349-1399), a Welsh landowner and soldier who fought in the Hundred Years' War against France.
During the Tudor period, the Salsbury family held significant influence in Wales. Sir John Salisbury (c. 1456-1534) was a prominent member of the family and served as the High Sheriff of Denbighshire in 1509.
In the 17th century, Sir Thomas Salisbury (1594-1668) was a notable English lawyer and judge who served as the Lord Chief Justice of the Court of King's Bench from 1668 until his death.
Other notable individuals with the surname include James Salsbury (1809-1883), an American lawyer and politician who served as the 16th Governor of Delaware, and Albert Raymond Salisbury (1868-1961), an American geologist and explorer known for his expeditions to Greenland and the Canadian Arctic.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Salsbury
Among Census respondents with the surname Salsbury, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Salsbury 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 Salsbury surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.6% · 1,729
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 79
- Two or more races3.3% · 65
- Black or African American2.3% · 44
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Salsbury
Salsbury 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
#13,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,202
-64 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 1,199 places
2020
#14,640
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,952
-250 bearers (-11.4%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Down 899 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,542 | 2,266 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,741 | 2,202 | 0.75 | -64 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 1,199 places |
| 2020 | #14,640 | 1,952 | 0.65 | -250 bearers (-11.4%) | Down 899 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 Salsbury 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 | #13,741 | #14,640 | -6.5% |
| Count | 2,202 | 1,952 | -11.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.75 | 0.65 | -12.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Salsbury bearers went from 2,202 to 1,952 (-11.4% change). The surname moved down 899 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,741 to #14,640.
FAQ
Salsbury surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Salsbury?
Name Census estimates that about 2,238 living Americans carry the surname Salsbury. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 153,152 residents.
How common is Salsbury?
Salsbury ranks #14,640 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.65 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 1,952 people with the surname Salsbury. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,238), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.65 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.65 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 Salsbury.
Has Salsbury become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Salsbury went from 2,202 recorded bearers to 1,952. That is a decrease of 250 (-11.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,741 to #14,640.
What does the Census say about the background of Salsbury?
Among Census respondents with the surname Salsbury, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Salsbury in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.6% (1,729 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Salsbury appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.6%), Hispanic (4.0%), Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Salsbury (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 Salsbury mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "stronghold of Sealfa," a personal name of Old English origin. 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 Salsbury (0.65 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 common is the surname Salsbury?
You can see how many people have the surname Salsbury on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.