2000
#9,215
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,255
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.21
Rare Last name
Spinner
An occupational surname referring to someone who spins yarn or works with spinning wheels.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,626 Americans carry the last name Spinner. That puts it at #9,779 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 94,527 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spinner 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 Spinner with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.6K
1 in 94,527
Census rank
#9,779
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,162 bearers of the surname Spinner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9779th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spinner, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.2%. The next largest groups are Black (19.4%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spinner
The surname SPINNER has its origins in medieval Germany, dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old High German word "spinnan," meaning "to spin," and originally referred to someone who spun yarn or thread for a living. The name was likely first adopted as an occupational surname, identifying individuals by their trade or profession.
In the Middle Ages, spinning was a crucial household task, and skilled spinners were highly valued members of the community. The SPINNER surname would have been given to those who excelled at this craft, either within their own homes or as professional spinners working for textile manufacturers or guilds.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname SPINNER can be found in the Stadtbuch (city book) of Nürnberg, Germany, which dates back to 1347. The entry mentions a certain "Hanns der Spinner," indicating the presence of the name in this region during the 14th century.
As the surname spread across German-speaking lands, it took on various spellings, such as Spinnler, Spynner, and Spinnar. These variations reflect regional dialects and the inconsistencies in spelling that were common before the standardization of modern German orthography.
Notable individuals bearing the SPINNER surname include Johann Gottlob Spinner (1738-1784), a German theologian and philosopher who wrote extensively on ethics and moral philosophy. Another notable figure was Karl Spinner (1833-1911), a German architect responsible for designing several prominent buildings in Stuttgart, including the Neues Schloss (New Palace).
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the SPINNER surname dates back to the 18th century. Johannes Spinner, born in 1720 in Germany, immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1749 and settled in the area now known as Berks County.
Another notable American with the SPINNER surname was Charles Peter Spinner (1826-1905), a Union Army officer during the American Civil War and later the Treasurer of the United States under President Ulysses S. Grant.
While the SPINNER surname is most commonly associated with its German origins, it has also been adopted by families in other parts of Europe, particularly in areas with strong textile traditions or German cultural influences.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spinner
Among Census respondents with the surname Spinner, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.2%. The next largest groups are Black (19.4%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Spinner 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 Spinner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.2% · 2,314
- Black or African American19.4% · 614
- Two or more races4.2% · 132
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 77
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spinner
Spinner 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
#9,503
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,420
+165 bearers (+5.1%)
Per 100,000 1.16
Rank movement Down 288 places
2020
#9,779
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,162
-258 bearers (-7.5%)
Per 100,000 1.06
Rank movement Down 276 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,215 | 3,255 | 1.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,503 | 3,420 | 1.16 | +165 bearers (+5.1%) | Down 288 places |
| 2020 | #9,779 | 3,162 | 1.06 | -258 bearers (-7.5%) | Down 276 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 Spinner 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 | #9,503 | #9,779 | -2.9% |
| Count | 3,420 | 3,162 | -7.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.16 | 1.06 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spinner bearers went from 3,420 to 3,162 (-7.5% change). The surname moved down 276 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,503 to #9,779.
FAQ
Spinner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spinner?
Name Census estimates that about 3,626 living Americans carry the surname Spinner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 94,527 residents.
How common is Spinner?
Spinner ranks #9,779 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.06 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 3,162 people with the surname Spinner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,626), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.06 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 Spinner.
Has Spinner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spinner went from 3,420 recorded bearers to 3,162. That is a decrease of 258 (-7.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,503 to #9,779.
What does the Census say about the background of Spinner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spinner, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.2%. The next largest groups are Black (19.4%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Spinner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.2% (2,314 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spinner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.2%), Black (19.4%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Spinner (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 Spinner mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who spins yarn or works with spinning wheels. 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 Spinner (1.06 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 Spinner?
Find out how common the surname Spinner is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.