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

Spillman, 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 Spillman surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Spillman in America

Spillman is the 7014th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Spillman surname appeared 4,775 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Spillman.

We can also compare 2010 data for Spillman 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 Spillman

The surname Spillman originates from England and dates back to the late 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "spill" meaning to spill or shed, and "mann" meaning man. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who worked as a butcher or in a similar trade involving the spilling of blood.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Spillman can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1199, which mention a person named Willelmus Spilleman. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 also contain references to individuals with the surname Spillman in various counties across England, such as John Spilleman in Oxfordshire and Roger Spilleman in Cambridgeshire.

During the 13th and 14th centuries, the name appeared in various forms, including Spillman, Spylman, and Spilman, reflecting the variations in spelling and pronunciation common during that era. It is possible that some of these variations were influenced by place names, as there were villages and towns with similar-sounding names, such as Spilsby in Lincolnshire.

One notable individual bearing the surname Spillman was Sir Robert Spillman (c. 1420 - c. 1490), a wealthy merchant and landowner from Norfolk. He served as a Member of Parliament for Norwich in 1472 and was knighted by King Edward IV.

Another prominent figure was John Spillman (c. 1555 - 1626), an English Protestant divine and theologian. He was a fellow of King's College, Cambridge, and served as the Regius Professor of Divinity from 1608 until his death.

In the 17th century, the name appears in records related to the English colonization of America. Thomas Spillman (c. 1630 - 1685) was one of the early settlers of Virginia, arriving in the colony around 1650 and becoming a prominent landowner and planter in Westmoreland County.

Moving into the 18th century, we find mentions of John Spillman (1681 - 1753), an English architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. George the Martyr in Southwark.

Lastly, Sir John Spillman (1812 - 1878) was a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the 19th century. He achieved the rank of Vice-Admiral and was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in recognition of his distinguished service.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Spillman

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

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 Spillman 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 Spillman 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 Spillman was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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