2000
#6,882
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,502
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.67
Rare Last name
Spratt
An English occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of sprouts or saplings.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,984 Americans carry the last name Spratt. That puts it at #7,394 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 68,771 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spratt 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 Spratt with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.0K
1 in 68,771
Census rank
#7,394
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,346 bearers of the surname Spratt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7394th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spratt, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spratt
The surname Spratt is of English origin, deriving from a nickname derived from the Middle English word "sprat," which referred to a small fish or a small, insignificant person. It is believed to have emerged in the 13th or 14th century.
The name Spratt was initially concentrated in the southern counties of England, particularly in Kent, Sussex, and Surrey. It is thought to have originated as a descriptive nickname, possibly referring to someone of small stature or someone who bore a resemblance to the small fish.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Spratt can be found in medieval records and tax rolls. For example, the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296 mention a John Spratt, while the Subsidy Rolls of Kent from 1334 list a Thomas Spratt.
In the 16th century, the surname Spratt gained notable recognition through the work of Thomas Spratt, an English churchman and scholar who was born in 1635 and died in 1713. He served as the Bishop of Rochester and was a prominent writer and historian.
Another notable figure with the surname Spratt was Ralph Spratt, an English architect and sculptor who lived from 1576 to 1623. He is best known for his work on the Bodleian Library in Oxford and the Chapel of Trinity College, Cambridge.
The name Spratt also appears in various place names and old spellings of place names. For example, the hamlet of Spratsgate in Kent is believed to have derived its name from the surname Spratt, indicating a historical presence of the family in that area.
Other notable individuals with the surname Spratt include:
1. George Spratt (1784-1857), an English cricketer who played for Sussex.
2. Thomas Spratt (1635-1713), the Bishop of Rochester mentioned earlier.
3. James Spratt (1771-1853), an English manufacturer and entrepreneur who founded the Spratt's dog food company.
4. Thomas Abel Brimage Spratt (1811-1888), an English naval officer and hydrographer who surveyed parts of the Mediterranean Sea.
5. Richard Spratt (1817-1888), an English-born Australian politician and judge who served as the Attorney-General of Victoria.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spratt
Among Census respondents with the surname Spratt, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Spratt 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 Spratt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.8% · 3,078
- Black or African American20.4% · 887
- Two or more races3.6% · 155
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 142
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 54
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 30
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spratt
Spratt 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
#7,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,674
+172 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 1.58
Rank movement Down 275 places
2020
#7,394
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,346
-328 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 1.45
Rank movement Down 237 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,882 | 4,502 | 1.67 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,157 | 4,674 | 1.58 | +172 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 275 places |
| 2020 | #7,394 | 4,346 | 1.45 | -328 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 237 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 Spratt 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 | #7,157 | #7,394 | -3.3% |
| Count | 4,674 | 4,346 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.58 | 1.45 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spratt bearers went from 4,674 to 4,346 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 237 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,157 to #7,394.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Spratt
FAQ
Spratt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spratt?
Name Census estimates that about 4,984 living Americans carry the surname Spratt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 68,771 residents.
How common is Spratt?
Spratt ranks #7,394 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.45 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 4,346 people with the surname Spratt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,984), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.45 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 Spratt.
Has Spratt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spratt went from 4,674 recorded bearers to 4,346. That is a decrease of 328 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,157 to #7,394.
What does the Census say about the background of Spratt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spratt, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Spratt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.8% (3,078 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spratt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.8%), Black (20.4%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Spratt (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 Spratt mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of sprouts or saplings. 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 Spratt (1.45 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 share the surname Spratt?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.