2000
#4,505
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,253
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.69
Rare Last name
Spradlin
Derived from a place name referring to someone living near a small enclosure or paddock.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,145 Americans carry the last name Spradlin. That puts it at #4,823 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 42,082 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spradlin 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
8.1K
1 in 42,082
Census rank
#4,823
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,103 bearers of the surname Spradlin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4823rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spradlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spradlin
The surname Spradlin is believed to originate from the Yorkshire region of England, dating back to the 13th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "spræc" meaning "speech" and "lin" meaning "dweller", suggesting that the name may have been given to someone who was an eloquent speaker or storyteller.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1297, where a John Spradelyn is listed as a taxpayer. This spelling variation suggests that the name may have evolved over time from its original form.
During the 16th century, the surname appears in various parish records across Yorkshire, such as the baptism of William Spradlyn in Knaresborough in 1582. This indicates that the name had become well-established in the region by this time.
Interestingly, there is also a record of a William Spradlin being granted a coat of arms in 1612, which suggests that the family had achieved a certain level of prominence and status during the early modern period.
Moving into the 17th century, the name begins to appear in other parts of England, likely due to migration and the expansion of the British Empire. For example, a John Spradlin is recorded as being baptized in the parish of St. Giles in Cambridgeshire in 1634.
One notable figure in the history of the Spradlin surname is Sir John Spradlin (1662-1738), a successful merchant and member of the East India Company. He was based in London and played a significant role in the expansion of British trade in the region.
Another individual of note is William Spradlin (1772-1853), a prominent architect who designed several churches and public buildings in the city of Birmingham during the early 19th century.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the surname began to appear more frequently in historical records from the United States, likely due to immigration from England and other parts of the British Isles. One example is Charles Spradlin (1898-1975), an American actor who appeared in several Hollywood films during the 1940s and 1950s.
Another notable figure with the Spradlin surname is James Spradlin (1934-2018), an American historian and author who specialized in the study of the American Civil War.
Overall, the surname Spradlin has a long and rich history, spanning several centuries and various parts of the English-speaking world. While its origins can be traced back to the Yorkshire region of England, the name has since been carried far and wide by those who bear it.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spradlin
Among Census respondents with the surname Spradlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Spradlin 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 Spradlin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 6,504
- Two or more races4.1% · 288
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 187
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 68
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 41
- Black or African American0.2% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spradlin
Spradlin 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
#4,806
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,356
+103 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 2.49
Rank movement Down 301 places
2020
#4,823
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,103
-253 bearers (-3.4%)
Per 100,000 2.38
Rank movement Down 17 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,505 | 7,253 | 2.69 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,806 | 7,356 | 2.49 | +103 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 301 places |
| 2020 | #4,823 | 7,103 | 2.38 | -253 bearers (-3.4%) | Down 17 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 Spradlin 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 | #4,806 | #4,823 | -0.4% |
| Count | 7,356 | 7,103 | -3.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.49 | 2.38 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spradlin bearers went from 7,356 to 7,103 (-3.4% change). The surname moved down 17 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,806 to #4,823.
FAQ
Spradlin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spradlin?
Name Census estimates that about 8,145 living Americans carry the surname Spradlin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 42,082 residents.
How common is Spradlin?
Spradlin ranks #4,823 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.38 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,103 people with the surname Spradlin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,145), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.38 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Spradlin.
Has Spradlin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spradlin went from 7,356 recorded bearers to 7,103. That is a decrease of 253 (-3.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,806 to #4,823.
What does the Census say about the background of Spradlin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spradlin, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Spradlin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (6,504 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spradlin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Two or More Races (4.1%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Spradlin (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 Spradlin mean?
Derived from a place name referring to someone living near a small enclosure or paddock. 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 Spradlin (2.38 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 are called Spradlin?
See how many people have the last name Spradlin on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.