2000
#5,461
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,858
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.17
Rare Last name
Sprinkle
An occupational surname referring to someone who sprinkled holy water during religious ceremonies.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,433 Americans carry the last name Sprinkle. That puts it at #5,922 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.88 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 53,281 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sprinkle 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
6.4K
1 in 53,281
Census rank
#5,922
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,610 bearers of the surname Sprinkle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.88 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5922nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sprinkle, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sprinkle
The surname "Sprinkle" is believed to have originated in England, specifically in the counties of Sussex and Kent, during the 13th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "sprengan," which means "to scatter or disperse." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who worked as a sower or farmer, scattering seeds on the land.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296, which mention a John Sprenkelyn. The spelling variations at that time included Sprenkelyn, Spryngkelyn, and Sprynkelynge.
In the 14th century, the Sprinkle name appeared in the Hundred Rolls of Kent, a collection of records from the reign of King Edward I. This suggests that the name had spread to other parts of southeastern England by that time.
A notable figure with the surname Sprinkle was Sir Thomas Sprinkle, a landowner and prominent figure in the county of Kent during the 15th century. He was born around 1420 and served as a member of the English Parliament for Canterbury in 1449.
Another individual of historical significance was John Sprinkle, a merchant and freeman of the City of London in the late 16th century. He was born around 1560 and is mentioned in the records of the Worshipful Company of Mercers, one of the oldest livery companies in the city.
In the 17th century, the Sprinkle name appeared in various parish records across England, indicating its continued presence in various regions. For instance, the baptismal records of St. Mary's Church in Ipswich, Suffolk, include the entry of a Thomas Sprinkle in 1623.
During the English Civil War, a Captain William Sprinkle is recorded as having fought for the Parliamentarian forces under Oliver Cromwell. He was born around 1610 and is mentioned in the muster rolls of Cromwell's New Model Army.
Another notable figure was Elizabeth Sprinkle, a Quaker preacher and author who lived in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. She was born in 1675 in Gloucestershire and published several religious works, including "A Testimony Concerning the Life and Virtuous Conversation of Mary Pennington" in 1717.
These examples demonstrate the long history and widespread presence of the Sprinkle surname across various regions of England, as well as its association with individuals from various walks of life, including landowners, merchants, soldiers, and religious figures.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sprinkle
Among Census respondents with the surname Sprinkle, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Sprinkle 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 Sprinkle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.5% · 4,963
- Black or African American5.4% · 303
- Two or more races3.6% · 201
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 100
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 30
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sprinkle
Sprinkle 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
#5,549
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,265
+407 bearers (+6.9%)
Per 100,000 2.12
Rank movement Down 88 places
2020
#5,922
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,610
-655 bearers (-10.5%)
Per 100,000 1.88
Rank movement Down 373 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,461 | 5,858 | 2.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,549 | 6,265 | 2.12 | +407 bearers (+6.9%) | Down 88 places |
| 2020 | #5,922 | 5,610 | 1.88 | -655 bearers (-10.5%) | Down 373 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 Sprinkle 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 | #5,549 | #5,922 | -6.7% |
| Count | 6,265 | 5,610 | -10.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.12 | 1.88 | -11.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sprinkle bearers went from 6,265 to 5,610 (-10.5% change). The surname moved down 373 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,549 to #5,922.
FAQ
Sprinkle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sprinkle?
Name Census estimates that about 6,433 living Americans carry the surname Sprinkle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 53,281 residents.
How common is Sprinkle?
Sprinkle ranks #5,922 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.88 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 5,610 people with the surname Sprinkle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,433), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.88 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.88 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 Sprinkle.
Has Sprinkle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sprinkle went from 6,265 recorded bearers to 5,610. That is a decrease of 655 (-10.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,549 to #5,922.
What does the Census say about the background of Sprinkle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sprinkle, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) 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 Sprinkle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.5% (4,963 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sprinkle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.5%), Black (5.4%), 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 Sprinkle (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 Sprinkle mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who sprinkled holy water during religious ceremonies. 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 Sprinkle (1.88 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 Sprinkle?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.