2000
#149,328
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Sherrington
A habitational name derived from a place named Sherrington in England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Sherrington. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sherrington 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 Sherrington with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Sherrington in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sherrington, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.9%) and Black (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sherrington
The surname Sherrington is of English origin and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is believed to have originated from the village of Sherington in Buckinghamshire, England. The name is derived from the Old English words "scir" meaning "bright" and "tun" meaning "enclosure" or "village," suggesting that the name refers to a bright or shining village.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Sherrington can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Buckinghamshire from the year 1176, which mention a person named Robert de Sherinton. This record suggests that the name was already well-established in the region by the late 12th century.
The Sherrington name appears in several historical documents throughout the centuries, including the Hundred Rolls of Buckinghamshire from 1273, which mentions a William de Sherington. The Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1334 also include references to individuals with the Sherrington surname in various parts of England.
In the 16th century, the Sherrington name gained prominence through the accomplishments of Sir William Sherrington (c. 1495-1548), who served as a member of King Henry VIII's Privy Council and held various important positions in the English court. Another notable figure was Sir Thomas Sherrington (c. 1515-1578), who was a distinguished soldier and served as a member of Parliament during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
During the 17th century, the Sherrington family maintained a presence in various parts of England, including Gloucestershire, where records show the birth of Thomas Sherrington in 1624. Another significant figure from this era was Sir William Sherrington (1607-1682), who was a prominent landowner and served as a Member of Parliament for Gloucestershire.
In the 18th century, the name continued to be found in various regions of England, with records indicating the birth of individuals such as John Sherrington (1702-1784) in Gloucestershire and Samuel Sherrington (1718-1795) in Oxfordshire.
Throughout the 19th century, the Sherrington surname was represented by several notable figures, including the physician and physiologist Charles Scott Sherrington (1857-1952), who received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1932 for his groundbreaking work on the functions of neurons. Other prominent individuals from this era include the architect and surveyor John Sherrington (1822-1905) and the political activist and suffragette Emily Sherrington (1851-1931).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sherrington
Among Census respondents with the surname Sherrington, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.9%) and Black (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Sherrington 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 Sherrington surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.3% · 86
- Hispanic or Latino6.9% · 7
- Black or African American3.9% · 4
- Two or more races2.9% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sherrington
Sherrington 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
#154,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
+4 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,579 places
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-3 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 152 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #149,328 | 101 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #154,907 | 105 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 5,579 places |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -3 bearers (-2.9%) | Up 152 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 Sherrington 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 | #154,907 | #154,755 | 0.1% |
| Count | 105 | 102 | -2.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -14.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sherrington bearers went from 105 to 102 (-2.9% change). The surname moved up 152 positions in the national ranking, going from #154,907 to #154,755.
FAQ
Sherrington surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sherrington?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Sherrington. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Sherrington?
Sherrington ranks #154,755 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 102 people with the surname Sherrington. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), 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 Sherrington.
Has Sherrington become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sherrington went from 105 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #154,907 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Sherrington?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sherrington, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.9%) and Black (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 Sherrington in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.3% (86 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sherrington appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.3%), Hispanic (6.9%), Black (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 Sherrington (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 Sherrington mean?
A habitational name derived from a place named Sherrington in 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 Sherrington (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 have the last name Sherrington?
Find out how many people have the surname Sherrington on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.