2000
#128,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Skidds
An occupational surname derived from an Old English word meaning "sheds" or "wooden outbuildings".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Skidds. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Skidds 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Skidds in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Skidds, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Black (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Skidds
The surname Skidds originated in England during the 13th century. It is derived from the Old English word "scytan" which translates to "one who shoots with the longbow." This suggests that the name's earliest bearers were skilled archers or bowmen.
In the medieval period, archery was an essential military skill and those skilled with the longbow were highly valued. The surname likely emerged as a descriptive name identifying individuals who excelled in this area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where a William Skyddes is mentioned as residing in Oxfordshire. The variant spellings Skyddes and Skiddes were common in early records.
During the 14th century, the name can be found in various regions across southern England, including Oxfordshire, Berkshire, and Hampshire. This suggests the name had spread from its likely place of origin.
Notable individuals with the surname Skidds include Sir Thomas Skidds, a prominent landowner and knight who fought in the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. Another early bearer was John Skidds, a merchant and alderman in the City of London during the late 15th century.
In the 16th century, the name appeared in the records of several villages in Wiltshire, such as Amesbury and Salisbury. Here, the name was sometimes spelled as "Skydes" or "Skyddes," reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation.
Another significant figure was Sir William Skidds, a member of Parliament for the borough of Malmesbury in 1553. He was a staunch Protestant and played a role in the religious reforms of Edward VI's reign.
The Skidds family also had connections to the village of Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire, where a branch of the family resided for generations. A notable member was Richard Skidds, born in 1612, who was a prominent landowner and served as a magistrate in the area.
As the centuries progressed, the name continued to be found across various parts of England, with individuals bearing the surname Skidds contributing to various fields, including agriculture, trade, and local governance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Skidds
Among Census respondents with the surname Skidds, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Black (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Skidds 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 Skidds surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.8% · 108
- Black or African American2.5% · 3
- Two or more races2.5% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Skidds
Skidds 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
#125,282
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 137
+15 bearers (+12.3%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 3,515 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-18 bearers (-13.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 17,506 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #128,797 | 122 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #125,282 | 137 | 0.05 | +15 bearers (+12.3%) | Up 3,515 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -18 bearers (-13.1%) | Down 17,506 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 Skidds 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 | #125,282 | #142,788 | -14.0% |
| Count | 137 | 119 | -13.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -20.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Skidds bearers went from 137 to 119 (-13.1% change). The surname moved down 17,506 positions in the national ranking, going from #125,282 to #142,788.
FAQ
Skidds surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Skidds?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Skidds. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Skidds?
Skidds ranks #142,788 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 119 people with the surname Skidds. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), 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 Skidds.
Has Skidds become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Skidds went from 137 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 18 (-13.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #125,282 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Skidds?
Among Census respondents with the surname Skidds, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Black (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Skidds in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.8% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Skidds appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.8%), Black (2.5%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Skidds (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 Skidds mean?
An occupational surname derived from an Old English word meaning "sheds" or "wooden outbuildings". 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 Skidds (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 surname Skidds?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.