2010
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Sephton
A locational surname originating from Sephton, near Liverpool, England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 118 Americans carry the last name Sephton. That puts it at #154,182 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,904,698 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sephton 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 Sephton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
118
1 in 2,904,698
Census rank
#154,182
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
103
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 103 bearers of the surname Sephton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154182nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sephton, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sephton
The surname Sephton originates from England, specifically from the Lancashire region, and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "sceap" meaning sheep and "tun" meaning farm or enclosure, suggesting that the name may have initially referred to a sheep farm or a place where sheep were kept.
The earliest known record of the name Sephton can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lancashire from the year 1176, where it was spelled as "Schepeton." Over time, the spelling evolved to its current form, Sephton. This surname is also closely related to the place name Sephton, a small village located in the metropolitan borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Sephton was Richard de Sephton, who lived in the 13th century and was mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Lancashire in 1246. Another notable bearer of the name was John Sephton, a prominent merchant and landowner from Liverpool, who lived in the 16th century.
In the 17th century, the name Sephton appeared in the Hearth Tax Rolls of Lancashire in 1663, indicating the presence of households with this surname in the region during that time period.
A famous figure with the surname Sephton was Sir Robert Sephton (1808-1891), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy and was knighted in 1869 for his services. He played a significant role in the Crimean War and the Second Opium War.
Another notable individual was Henry Sephton (1842-1916), a British architect and surveyor who was responsible for designing several notable buildings in Liverpool, including the Philharmonic Hall and the Royal Court Theatre.
Robert Sephton (1874-1956) was a British politician and trade unionist who served as a Labour Party Member of Parliament for the Liverpool Kirkdale constituency from 1923 to 1931.
The name Sephton has also been found in various historical records and documents throughout the centuries, further solidifying its English origins and long-standing presence in the Lancashire region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sephton
Among Census respondents with the surname Sephton, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Sephton 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 Sephton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 93
- Hispanic or Latino5.8% · 6
- Two or more races3.9% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sephton
Sephton appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,182
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
-4 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 1,554 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,182 | 103 | 0.03 | -4 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 1,554 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 Sephton 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 | #152,628 | #154,182 | -1.0% |
| Count | 107 | 103 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sephton bearers went from 107 to 103 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 1,554 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #154,182.
FAQ
Sephton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sephton?
Name Census estimates that about 118 living Americans carry the surname Sephton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,904,698 residents.
How common is Sephton?
Sephton ranks #154,182 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 103 people with the surname Sephton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (118), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Sephton.
Has Sephton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sephton went from 107 recorded bearers to 103. That is a decrease of 4 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #152,628 to #154,182.
What does the Census say about the background of Sephton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sephton, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Sephton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (93 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sephton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Hispanic (5.8%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Sephton (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 Sephton mean?
A locational surname originating from Sephton, near Liverpool, 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 Sephton (0.03 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 are called Sephton?
See how many people have the surname Sephton on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.