2000
#34,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 629
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.23
Very Rare Last name
Shortell
A surname possibly derived from the Anglo-Norman French word "sord," meaning deaf.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 745 Americans carry the last name Shortell. That puts it at #36,940 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.22 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 460,073 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shortell 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
745
1 in 460,073
Census rank
#36,940
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
650
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 650 bearers of the surname Shortell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.22 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 36940th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shortell, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shortell
The surname Shortell is of Anglo-Saxon origin and is derived from an old English locational name for someone who lived on or near a short hill. The name is believed to have originated in England during the 11th century. The earliest known spelling of the name was "Schortehull" which appeared in the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners and their properties commissioned by William the Conqueror.
In the 13th century, the surname was also recorded as "Schortehulle" and "Schortehylle" in various English records. Over time, the name evolved into its modern spelling of Shortell. Several place names in England, such as Shorthill in Staffordshire and Shortridge in Northumberland, are believed to have contributed to the development of the surname.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Shortell was William Shortell, who was born in Gloucestershire, England in 1425. Another notable bearer of the name was Sir John Shortell, a knight who fought in the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 during the Hundred Years' War.
In the 16th century, the surname Shortell began to appear in Irish records, suggesting that some bearers of the name had migrated to Ireland. One of the earliest recorded Irish individuals with the surname was Patrick Shortell, who was born in County Tipperary in 1567.
Other notable individuals with the surname Shortell include:
1. Richard Shortell (1642-1718), an English philosopher and theologian.
2. Mary Shortell (1780-1847), an Irish poet and writer.
3. James Shortell (1825-1891), an Irish-American politician who served as the 24th Mayor of Philadelphia.
4. William Shortell (1867-1932), an Australian cricket player who played for the national team.
5. Evelyn Shortell (1905-1992), an American physicist and researcher at Harvard University.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shortell
Among Census respondents with the surname Shortell, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Shortell 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 Shortell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.4% · 607
- Two or more races3.4% · 22
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 13
- Black or African American1.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shortell
Shortell 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
#34,353
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 660
+31 bearers (+4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Down 239 places
2020
#36,940
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 650
-10 bearers (-1.5%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Down 2,587 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #34,114 | 629 | 0.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #34,353 | 660 | 0.22 | +31 bearers (+4.9%) | Down 239 places |
| 2020 | #36,940 | 650 | 0.22 | -10 bearers (-1.5%) | Down 2,587 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 Shortell 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 | #34,353 | #36,940 | -7.5% |
| Count | 660 | 650 | -1.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.22 | 0.22 | -1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shortell bearers went from 660 to 650 (-1.5% change). The surname moved down 2,587 positions in the national ranking, going from #34,353 to #36,940.
FAQ
Shortell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shortell?
Name Census estimates that about 745 living Americans carry the surname Shortell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 460,073 residents.
How common is Shortell?
Shortell ranks #36,940 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.22 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 650 people with the surname Shortell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (745), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.22 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.22 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 Shortell.
Has Shortell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shortell went from 660 recorded bearers to 650. That is a decrease of 10 (-1.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #34,353 to #36,940.
What does the Census say about the background of Shortell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shortell, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Shortell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.4% (607 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shortell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.4%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Shortell (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 Shortell mean?
A surname possibly derived from the Anglo-Norman French word "sord," meaning deaf. 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 Shortell (0.22 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 Shortell?
You can see how many people have the surname Shortell on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.