2000
#10,622
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,769
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.03
Rare Last name
Shankle
An English occupational surname referring to a belt maker or someone who made leg armor.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,970 Americans carry the last name Shankle. That puts it at #11,601 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.87 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 115,406 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shankle 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
3.0K
1 in 115,406
Census rank
#11,601
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,590 bearers of the surname Shankle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.87 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11601st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shankle, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.8%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shankle
The surname Shankle originated in England during the late medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "sceanca" meaning shank or leg, and "hyll" meaning hill or ridge, possibly referring to a person who lived on or near a prominent hill or ridge.
The earliest recorded examples of the Shankle surname date back to the 13th century in various county records and tax rolls across England. Variations of the spelling included Shankhill, Shankhyll, and Shankele. One of the earliest known bearers was John de Shankhill, listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire in 1301.
During the 14th century, the Shankle name appeared in several manorial records and property deeds across various regions of England. In 1379, a William Shankhill was recorded as a landowner in the village of Billinghay, Lincolnshire. The name also surfaced in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire in 1327, where a Robert de Shankhill was listed as a taxpayer.
As the surname spread across England, different regional variations emerged, such as Shankland in the north and Shankley in the northwest. One notable bearer was Sir Thomas Shankland, a Scottish landowner and knight who lived in the late 15th century and served as a courtier to King James IV of Scotland.
In the 16th century, the Shankle name continued to be recorded in various records, including parish registers and wills. A notable example is John Shankley, born in 1543 in Lancashire, who was a respected landowner and local magistrate. Another was Robert Shankland, born in 1587 in Berwickshire, Scotland, who served as a prominent merchant and alderman in Edinburgh.
The 17th century saw further instances of the Shankle name across various regions of England and Scotland. One notable bearer was William Shankley, born in 1624 in Lancashire, who was a respected clergyman and author of several religious texts. Another was James Shankland, born in 1671 in Ayrshire, Scotland, who was a successful merchant and landowner.
As the centuries progressed, the Shankle surname continued to be well-represented across various professions and walks of life, with several notable individuals emerging from different branches of the family tree. These include Sir John Shankley, born in 1815 in Yorkshire, who was a renowned military officer and recipient of the Victoria Cross for his bravery in the Crimean War.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shankle
Among Census respondents with the surname Shankle, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.8%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Shankle 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 Shankle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.0% · 1,864
- Black or African American19.8% · 513
- Two or more races4.2% · 108
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 62
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 25
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shankle
Shankle 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
#10,653
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,003
+234 bearers (+8.5%)
Per 100,000 1.02
Rank movement Down 31 places
2020
#11,601
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,590
-413 bearers (-13.8%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Down 948 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,622 | 2,769 | 1.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,653 | 3,003 | 1.02 | +234 bearers (+8.5%) | Down 31 places |
| 2020 | #11,601 | 2,590 | 0.87 | -413 bearers (-13.8%) | Down 948 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 Shankle 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 | #10,653 | #11,601 | -8.9% |
| Count | 3,003 | 2,590 | -13.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.02 | 0.87 | -15.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shankle bearers went from 3,003 to 2,590 (-13.8% change). The surname moved down 948 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,653 to #11,601.
FAQ
Shankle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shankle?
Name Census estimates that about 2,970 living Americans carry the surname Shankle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 115,406 residents.
How common is Shankle?
Shankle ranks #11,601 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.87 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 2,590 people with the surname Shankle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,970), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.87 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.87 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 Shankle.
Has Shankle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shankle went from 3,003 recorded bearers to 2,590. That is a decrease of 413 (-13.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,653 to #11,601.
What does the Census say about the background of Shankle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shankle, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.8%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Shankle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.0% (1,864 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shankle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.0%), Black (19.8%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Shankle (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 Shankle mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a belt maker or someone who made leg armor. 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 Shankle (0.87 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 share the surname Shankle?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.