2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Silkett
An archaic English occupational surname derived from the Middle English "silett", referring to a maker or seller of silk.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Silkett. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Silkett 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Silkett in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Silkett, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Silkett
The surname Silkett is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be a variant spelling of the Old English word "silcett," which referred to a person who lived near a small stream or brook. The earliest known recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 14th century in various tax rolls and parish records from the county of Norfolk.
One of the earliest documented examples of the Silkett surname is found in the Subsidy Rolls of Norfolk, dated 1379, which mentions a John Silkett residing in the village of Mulbarton. Another early reference is in the Court Rolls of Wymondham, Norfolk, from 1412, where a Thomas Silkett is listed as a landowner.
In the 16th century, the name appears to have spread beyond Norfolk, with records showing Silketts living in neighboring counties such as Suffolk and Essex. The Protestation Returns of 1641-1642, a survey conducted during the English Civil War, includes several instances of the Silkett name across various parishes in these regions.
One notable individual bearing the Silkett surname was Sir John Silkett, a wealthy merchant and landowner who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was born in Norfolk in 1570 and served as the High Sheriff of Norfolk in 1602. Silkett's involvement in local politics and his substantial landholdings in the county suggest that his family had established itself as part of the gentry by this time.
Another prominent figure was Robert Silkett, a Member of Parliament who represented the borough of Ipswich in Suffolk during the 1620s. He was born in 1585 and played an active role in the political and religious tensions of the era, aligning himself with the Puritan faction within the Church of England.
In the 18th century, the Silkett surname can be found in various church records and parish registers across eastern England, indicating that the name had become well-established in the region. One noteworthy individual from this period was William Silkett, a renowned clockmaker from Norwich, Norfolk, who was active in the late 1700s and is credited with creating several intricate and ornate clocks that are now considered valuable antiques.
The 19th century saw the Silkett name spread further afield, with records showing individuals bearing the surname in various parts of England, as well as in some parts of Wales and Scotland. This was likely due to increased mobility and migration patterns during the Industrial Revolution.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Silkett
Among Census respondents with the surname Silkett, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Silkett 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 Silkett surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.4% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino5.5% · 6
- Two or more races4.5% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Silkett
Silkett 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+4 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,400 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-5 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,305 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 5,400 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 5,305 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 Silkett 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 | #144,141 | #149,446 | -3.7% |
| Count | 115 | 110 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Silkett bearers went from 115 to 110 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 5,305 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #149,446.
FAQ
Silkett surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Silkett?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Silkett. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Silkett?
Silkett ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Silkett. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Silkett.
Has Silkett become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Silkett went from 115 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Silkett?
Among Census respondents with the surname Silkett, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Silkett in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.4% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Silkett appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.4%), Hispanic (5.5%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Silkett (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 Silkett mean?
An archaic English occupational surname derived from the Middle English "silett", referring to a maker or seller of silk. 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 Silkett (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 share the surname Silkett?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.