Find out how popular the last name Skelton is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Skelton.

Skelton, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Skelton surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Skelton in America

Skelton is the 2330th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Skelton surname appeared 15,624 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Skelton.

We can also compare 2010 data for Skelton to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Skelton

The surname Skelton originates from the northern parts of England, particularly Yorkshire and Lancashire. It is an English locational surname derived from the Old English words 'scelan' meaning a shelter or temporary dwelling, and 'tun' meaning a farm or settlement. The name likely referred to someone who lived in a particular shelter or temporary dwelling.

Skelton is an ancient surname, with records dating back to the 12th century. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was William de Skelton, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1170. The Skelton family held lands in Yorkshire from a very early period, and the name is associated with several place names in the region, such as Skelton near York and Skelton in Cleveland.

The Skelton surname also appears in the famous Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landholdings in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The entry records a place called 'Scheltun' in Yorkshire, which is believed to be an early spelling of the name Skelton.

Over the centuries, the Skelton name has been spelled in various ways, including Skelton, Skeltone, Schelton, and Schelletun. Some notable individuals with the surname Skelton include John Skelton (c. 1460 - 1529), an English poet and tutor to King Henry VIII, and Philip Skelton (1707 - 1787), an English clergyman and writer.

Another prominent bearer of the name was Sir John Skelton (c. 1534 - 1598), an English soldier and poet who served as a commander in the English army during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. In the 17th century, Samuel Skelton (1592 - 1670) was a English-born Puritan minister who became one of the founders of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in America.

In more recent times, John Skelton (1923 - 1999) was an English comedian and actor, best known for his television comedy shows in the 1960s and 1970s. Kath Skelton (1926 - 2008) was an Australian actress and playwright, who had a successful career on stage and television.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Skelton

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Skelton.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Skelton was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Skelton has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Skelton was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Skelton, please contact us.

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