2000
#8,524
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,560
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.32
Rare Last name
Southwick
Derived from a place name meaning "south farm" or "south settlement" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,311 Americans carry the last name Southwick. That puts it at #8,433 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.26 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 79,507 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Southwick 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 Southwick with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.3K
1 in 79,507
Census rank
#8,433
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,759 bearers of the surname Southwick in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.26 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8433rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Southwick, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Southwick
The surname Southwick is of Anglo-Saxon origin, derived from the Old English words 'suth' meaning south and 'wic' meaning a dwelling or village. It likely originated in southern England during the medieval period, referring to someone who lived in a village or settlement located to the south of a particular area or landmark.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Southwick can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landowners and property in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The Domesday Book mentions a place called Sudwica, which is believed to be the modern-day village of Southwick in Wiltshire.
The name Southwick also appears in various historical records and documents throughout the centuries, including the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1195, where a certain William de Sudwic is mentioned. In the 13th century, a Sir John de Southwick is recorded as holding lands in the county of Gloucestershire.
Notable individuals with the surname Southwick include Sir Robert Southwick (1506-1568), who served as a Member of Parliament during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Another prominent figure was Edmund Southwick (1592-1676), a Quaker who was banished from Massachusetts Bay Colony for his religious beliefs and later settled in Rhode Island.
In the 18th century, John Southwick (1732-1801) was a prominent merchant and landowner in New England, while William Southwick (1823-1899) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from New York.
Another notable individual with the surname Southwick was Albert P. Southwick (1833-1913), a Union Army officer during the American Civil War who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his bravery and leadership in the Battle of Antietam in 1862.
The name Southwick has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Southwick in Northamptonshire, Southwick in West Sussex, and Southwick in Tyne and Wear. These place names likely influenced the spread and variations of the surname over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Southwick
Among Census respondents with the surname Southwick, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Southwick 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 Southwick surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 3,464
- Two or more races3.3% · 124
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 117
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 33
- Black or African American0.3% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Southwick
Southwick 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
#8,917
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,671
+111 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 1.24
Rank movement Down 393 places
2020
#8,433
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,759
+88 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 1.26
Rank movement Up 484 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,524 | 3,560 | 1.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,917 | 3,671 | 1.24 | +111 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 393 places |
| 2020 | #8,433 | 3,759 | 1.26 | +88 bearers (+2.4%) | Up 484 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 Southwick 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 | #8,917 | #8,433 | 5.4% |
| Count | 3,671 | 3,759 | 2.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.24 | 1.26 | 1.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Southwick bearers went from 3,671 to 3,759 (+2.4% change). The surname moved up 484 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,917 to #8,433.
FAQ
Southwick surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Southwick?
Name Census estimates that about 4,311 living Americans carry the surname Southwick. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 79,507 residents.
How common is Southwick?
Southwick ranks #8,433 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.26 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 3,759 people with the surname Southwick. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,311), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.26 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.26 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 Southwick.
Has Southwick become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Southwick went from 3,671 recorded bearers to 3,759. That is an increase of 88 (+2.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,917 to #8,433.
What does the Census say about the background of Southwick?
Among Census respondents with the surname Southwick, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Southwick in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (3,464 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Southwick appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Southwick (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 Southwick mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "south farm" or "south settlement" in Old English. 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 Southwick (1.26 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 common is the surname Southwick?
See how many Americans have the surname Southwick on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.