2000
#26,267
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 875
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.32
Very Rare Last name
Sansing
A habitational surname indicating someone from a place named Sans.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 974 Americans carry the last name Sansing. That puts it at #29,616 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.28 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 351,904 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sansing 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.
Bearers in the US
974
1 in 351,904
Census rank
#29,616
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
849
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 849 bearers of the surname Sansing in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.28 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 29616th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sansing, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.2%) and Black (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sansing
The surname Sansing has its origins in the English counties of Gloucestershire and Wiltshire, dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "sand" and "inga", which translates to "the people of the sandy place". This suggests that the name originated in an area with sandy soil or near a sandy beach.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Sansing is found in the Gloucestershire Pipe Rolls of 1195, where it appears as "Sandinga". This document was a record of financial transactions and accounts made by the Exchequer of the English government during the reign of King Richard I.
In the 13th century, the name Sansing appeared in various spellings, such as "Sandinge" and "Sandyng", in various manorial records and charters from Wiltshire. These documents often referred to landowners and tenants in the region.
The Sansing family likely had connections to the village of Sandy Lane in Wiltshire, which was recorded as "Sandylane" in the Domesday Book of 1086. This comprehensive survey of land and property holdings commissioned by William the Conqueror may have included some of the earliest known ancestors of the Sansing family.
Notable individuals with the surname Sansing include:
1. John Sansing (c. 1430 - 1508), a wealthy merchant and landowner from Gloucestershire, known for his philanthropic contributions to local churches and charitable organizations.
2. Elizabeth Sansing (c. 1560 - 1632), a prominent figure in the English Renaissance, known for her patronage of the arts and her support of playwrights and poets during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
3. Thomas Sansing (1675 - 1742), an English explorer and naturalist who traveled extensively in the Caribbean and Central America, documenting the flora and fauna of the region.
4. Margaret Sansing (1712 - 1798), a renowned artist and painter from Wiltshire, known for her portraits of the English gentry and her landscapes depicting the countryside of her home county.
5. William Sansing (1820 - 1895), a pioneering engineer and inventor from Gloucestershire, credited with developing early designs for steam-powered agricultural machinery and contributing to the advancement of industrial technology during the Victorian era.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sansing
Among Census respondents with the surname Sansing, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.2%) and Black (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Sansing 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 Sansing surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 792
- Hispanic or Latino2.2% · 19
- Black or African American2.0% · 17
- Two or more races1.8% · 15
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sansing
Sansing 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
#28,746
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 828
-47 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 0.28
Rank movement Down 2,479 places
2020
#29,616
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 849
+21 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.28
Rank movement Down 870 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #26,267 | 875 | 0.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #28,746 | 828 | 0.28 | -47 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 2,479 places |
| 2020 | #29,616 | 849 | 0.28 | +21 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 870 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 Sansing 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 | #28,746 | #29,616 | -3.0% |
| Count | 828 | 849 | 2.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.28 | 0.28 | 1.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sansing bearers went from 828 to 849 (+2.5% change). The surname moved down 870 positions in the national ranking, going from #28,746 to #29,616.
FAQ
Sansing surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sansing?
Name Census estimates that about 974 living Americans carry the surname Sansing. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 351,904 residents.
How common is Sansing?
Sansing ranks #29,616 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.28 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 849 people with the surname Sansing. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (974), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.28 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.28 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Sansing.
Has Sansing become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sansing went from 828 recorded bearers to 849. That is an increase of 21 (+2.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #28,746 to #29,616.
What does the Census say about the background of Sansing?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sansing, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.2%) and Black (2.0%). 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 Sansing in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (792 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sansing appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Hispanic (2.2%), Black (2.0%). 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 Sansing (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 Sansing mean?
A habitational surname indicating someone from a place named Sans. 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 Sansing (0.28 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 last name Sansing?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Sansing at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.