2000
#7,178
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,286
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.59
Rare Last name
Smedley
An English occupational surname referring to someone who worked as a smith or metalworker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,799 Americans carry the last name Smedley. That puts it at #7,623 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.40 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 71,422 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Smedley 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 Smedley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.8K
1 in 71,422
Census rank
#7,623
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,185 bearers of the surname Smedley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.40 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7623rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Smedley, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.7%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Smedley
The surname Smedley is of English origin, traced back to the 13th century. It is an occupational name derived from the Old English words "smiđ" meaning "smith" and "leah" meaning "clearing" or "meadow." The name likely referred to a smith or metalworker who lived in a clearing or meadow.
The earliest recorded instance of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire from 1273, where it appears as "Smetheleye." This early spelling variation highlights the name's evolution from the original Old English components.
In the 14th century, the Smedley surname appeared in various records, including the Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire from 1327, where it was written as "Smetheleye," and the Subsidy Rolls of Derbyshire from 1379, where it was recorded as "Smethelay."
The Smedley name also has ties to several place names, such as Smedley in Cheshire, which was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Smedelee." This suggests that the surname may have originated from a location bearing a similar name.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have carried the Smedley surname. One of the earliest recorded was John Smedley (c. 1500 - 1562), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Dean of Carlisle Cathedral.
Another notable figure was Obadiah Smedley (1676 - 1742), an English churchman and academic who served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge from 1735 to 1736.
In the 19th century, Martha Smedley (1825 - 1907) was a prominent English philanthropist and social reformer who advocated for women's rights and education.
John Smedley (1853 - 1922) was an English industrialist and founder of the Smedley's Hydro textile company, which became renowned for its high-quality underwear and apparel.
More recently, Constance Smedley (1876 - 1941) was a British author and journalist known for her travel writing and novels set in Asia, particularly India and China.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Smedley
Among Census respondents with the surname Smedley, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.7%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Smedley 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 Smedley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.4% · 3,279
- Black or African American10.7% · 447
- Two or more races5.0% · 209
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 180
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 39
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 31
Timeline
Historical Census data for Smedley
Smedley 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
#7,605
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,371
+85 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 1.48
Rank movement Down 427 places
2020
#7,623
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,185
-186 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 1.40
Rank movement Down 18 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,178 | 4,286 | 1.59 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,605 | 4,371 | 1.48 | +85 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 427 places |
| 2020 | #7,623 | 4,185 | 1.40 | -186 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 18 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 Smedley 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 | #7,605 | #7,623 | -0.2% |
| Count | 4,371 | 4,185 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.48 | 1.40 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Smedley bearers went from 4,371 to 4,185 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 18 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,605 to #7,623.
FAQ
Smedley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Smedley?
Name Census estimates that about 4,799 living Americans carry the surname Smedley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 71,422 residents.
How common is Smedley?
Smedley ranks #7,623 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.40 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,185 people with the surname Smedley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,799), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.4 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.40 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Smedley.
Has Smedley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Smedley went from 4,371 recorded bearers to 4,185. That is a decrease of 186 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,605 to #7,623.
What does the Census say about the background of Smedley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Smedley, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.7%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Smedley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.4% (3,279 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Smedley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.4%), Black (10.7%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Smedley (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 Smedley mean?
An English occupational surname referring to someone who worked as a smith or metalworker. 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 Smedley (1.40 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 Smedley?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Smedley, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.