2000
#116,123
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 139
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Shellington
A habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "settlement by the sheltered meadow".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Shellington. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shellington 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Shellington in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shellington, the largest self-reported group is Black at 48.8%. The next largest groups are White (42.1%) and Two or More Races (5.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shellington
The surname SHELLINGTON has its origins in England, dating back to the early medieval period around the 11th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "scyll" meaning a shed or shelter, and "tun" meaning a town or settlement. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived in a sheltered town or settlement.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the SHELLINGTON surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Scellingtun" in reference to a settlement in Berkshire. This early spelling variation highlights the evolution of the name over time.
In the 13th century, records show a John de Shellington was a prominent landowner in Warwickshire, holding estates in the village of Shellington near Coventry. This village likely took its name from the same linguistic roots as the surname.
During the 14th century, a notable figure bearing the SHELLINGTON name was Sir Richard de Shellington, a knight who fought alongside King Edward III in the Hundred Years' War against France. He was born around 1320 and died in battle in 1356.
In the 16th century, the SHELLINGTON surname can be found in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Shrewsbury, where a William Shellington was baptized in 1587. This suggests that the name had spread to different regions of England by this time.
Another notable individual with the SHELLINGTON surname was Robert Shellington, a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of London during the 17th century. He was born in 1625 and played a significant role in the city's trade and governance.
Throughout the centuries, the SHELLINGTON surname has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Shellington in Bedfordshire, Shellington in Shropshire, and Shellington in Norfolk, further reinforcing its connection to the concept of a sheltered settlement.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shellington
Among Census respondents with the surname Shellington, the largest self-reported group is Black at 48.8%. The next largest groups are White (42.1%) and Two or More Races (5.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Shellington 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 Shellington surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American48.8% · 59
- White42.1% · 51
- Two or more races5.8% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shellington
Shellington 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
#119,508
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 145
+6 bearers (+4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 3,385 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-24 bearers (-16.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 21,801 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #116,123 | 139 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #119,508 | 145 | 0.05 | +6 bearers (+4.3%) | Down 3,385 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | -24 bearers (-16.6%) | Down 21,801 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 Shellington 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 | #119,508 | #141,309 | -18.2% |
| Count | 145 | 121 | -16.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -19.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shellington bearers went from 145 to 121 (-16.6% change). The surname moved down 21,801 positions in the national ranking, going from #119,508 to #141,309.
FAQ
Shellington surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shellington?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Shellington. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Shellington?
Shellington ranks #141,309 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 121 people with the surname Shellington. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Shellington.
Has Shellington become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shellington went from 145 recorded bearers to 121. That is a decrease of 24 (-16.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #119,508 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Shellington?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shellington, the largest self-reported group is Black at 48.8%. The next largest groups are White (42.1%) and Two or More Races (5.8%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Shellington in the 2020 Census, accounting for 48.8% (59 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shellington appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (48.8%), White (42.1%), Two or More Races (5.8%). 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 Shellington (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 Shellington mean?
A habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "settlement by the sheltered meadow". 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 Shellington (0.04 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 Shellington?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Shellington is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.