2000
#1,567
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,998
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.78
Uncommon Last name
Sherwood
From a place name meaning "bright wood" or "clearing in a forest" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 23,917 Americans carry the last name Sherwood. That puts it at #1,686 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 14,331 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sherwood 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 Sherwood with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
24K
1 in 14,331
Census rank
#1,686
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
21K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 20,857 bearers of the surname Sherwood in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1686th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sherwood, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sherwood
The surname Sherwood is an English toponymic name derived from the Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire. It originally referred to someone who lived near or in the Sherwood Forest area. The name is derived from the Old English words "sceor" meaning bright or sheering, and "wudu" meaning wood or forest, collectively meaning "bright or sheer wood".
The earliest recorded spelling of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appeared as "Siruuede". Other early spellings include Shirewode, Shyrewode, and Shyrwode in the 13th and 14th centuries. The name was also associated with the legendary figure of Robin Hood, who was said to have resided in Sherwood Forest.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was William de Shyrwode, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire in 1195. Another early bearer was Robertus de Shirewode, recorded in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1272.
In the 14th century, a notable figure with the surname was Sir Thomas de Shyrwode, a knight who fought in the Battle of Crécy during the Hundred Years' War in 1346. He was born around 1320 and died in 1372.
During the 16th century, John Sherwood (1508-1554) was a prominent English Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake for his religious beliefs during the Marian Persecutions.
In the 17th century, Benjamin Sherwood (1638-1688) was an English nonconformist minister and author who wrote several works on religious topics.
Another notable bearer of the name was Mary Martha Sherwood (1775-1851), an English writer and educator best known for her children's literature, including the popular book "The Fairchild Family".
In the 19th century, William Henry Sherwood (1826-1888) was an American pianist and composer who made significant contributions to the development of American classical music.
These are just a few examples of individuals with the surname Sherwood throughout history, highlighting its English origins and connection to the Sherwood Forest area, as well as its use by notable figures across various fields.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sherwood
Among Census respondents with the surname Sherwood, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Sherwood 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 Sherwood surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.4% · 18,229
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 851
- Two or more races3.8% · 787
- Black or African American2.9% · 611
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 220
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 159
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sherwood
Sherwood 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
#1,685
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,384
+386 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 7.25
Rank movement Down 118 places
2020
#1,686
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,857
-527 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 6.98
Rank movement Down 1 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,567 | 20,998 | 7.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,685 | 21,384 | 7.25 | +386 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 118 places |
| 2020 | #1,686 | 20,857 | 6.98 | -527 bearers (-2.5%) | Down 1 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 Sherwood 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 | #1,685 | #1,686 | -0.1% |
| Count | 21,384 | 20,857 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 7.25 | 6.98 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sherwood bearers went from 21,384 to 20,857 (-2.5% change). The surname moved down 1 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,685 to #1,686.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Sherwood
FAQ
Sherwood surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sherwood?
Name Census estimates that about 23,917 living Americans carry the surname Sherwood. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 14,331 residents.
How common is Sherwood?
Sherwood ranks #1,686 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.98 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 20,857 people with the surname Sherwood. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (23,917), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.98 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Sherwood.
Has Sherwood become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sherwood went from 21,384 recorded bearers to 20,857. That is a decrease of 527 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,685 to #1,686.
What does the Census say about the background of Sherwood?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sherwood, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Sherwood in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.4% (18,229 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sherwood appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.4%), Hispanic (4.1%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Sherwood (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 Sherwood mean?
From a place name meaning "bright wood" or "clearing in a forest" in Old English. 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 Sherwood (6.98 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 Sherwood?
You can see how common the surname Sherwood is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.