2000
#129,619
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Silby
A locational surname derived from the village of Silby in North Yorkshire, England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Silby. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Silby 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 Silby with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Silby in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Silby, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Black (16.0%) and Hispanic (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Silby
The surname Silby originated in England during the late medieval period. It is believed to be a locational name derived from the village of Silby, located in the East Riding of Yorkshire. The name itself is thought to come from the Old English words 'sile', meaning a willow tree, and 'by', meaning a settlement or village, suggesting that the original bearers of the name lived near a willow tree or in a settlement surrounded by willow trees.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Silby appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, a survey of landowners commissioned by William the Conqueror. In this document, a landowner named Robert de Sileby is listed as holding lands in the county of Lincolnshire.
In the 13th century, a man named William de Silby was recorded as a member of the clergy in the town of Beverley, Yorkshire. This early reference to the name suggests that the Silby family had established roots in the region by this time.
During the 14th century, the name Silby appeared in various legal and ecclesiastical records across Yorkshire and the surrounding areas. One notable bearer was John Silby, who was appointed as the vicar of the parish church in the village of Silby in 1376.
In the 16th century, a man named Thomas Silby was born in the village of Silby in 1512. He later became a prominent merchant and landowner in the nearby town of Hull. His descendants continued to use the Silby surname and contributed to the local economy and community for several generations.
Another notable figure bearing the Silby name was Sir William Silby, who was born in 1625 and served as a Member of Parliament for the borough of Beverley in the late 17th century. He was a respected figure in the local gentry and played a role in the political and social affairs of the region during his lifetime.
While the Silby surname originated in Yorkshire, it eventually spread to other parts of England and beyond as families migrated and settled in new areas. However, the name remains relatively uncommon, reflecting its localized origins and historical significance in the East Riding of Yorkshire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Silby
Among Census respondents with the surname Silby, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Black (16.0%) and Hispanic (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Silby 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 Silby surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.4% · 82
- Black or African American16.0% · 17
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Silby
Silby 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
#156,044
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-17 bearers (-14.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 26,425 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
+2 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 3,705 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #129,619 | 121 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #156,044 | 104 | 0.04 | -17 bearers (-14.0%) | Down 26,425 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.9%) | Up 3,705 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 Silby 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 | #156,044 | #152,339 | 2.4% |
| Count | 104 | 106 | 1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Silby bearers went from 104 to 106 (+1.9% change). The surname moved up 3,705 positions in the national ranking, going from #156,044 to #152,339.
FAQ
Silby surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Silby?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Silby. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Silby?
Silby ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Silby. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Silby.
Has Silby become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Silby went from 104 recorded bearers to 106. That is an increase of 2 (+1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #156,044 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Silby?
Among Census respondents with the surname Silby, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Black (16.0%) and Hispanic (4.7%). 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 Silby in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.4% (82 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Silby appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.4%), Black (16.0%), Hispanic (4.7%). 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 Silby (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 Silby mean?
A locational surname derived from the village of Silby in North Yorkshire, 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 Silby (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 many people have the last name Silby?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Silby, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.