2000
#107,565
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 153
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Staffon
An anglicized version of the Swedish surname Staffansson, meaning "son of Staffan".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Staffon. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Staffon 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Staffon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Staffon, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Staffon
The surname Staffon has its origins in England, tracing back to the Anglo-Saxon period of the 5th to 11th centuries. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "stæf" meaning a staff or rod, and "tun" meaning a village or town. This suggests that the name may have referred to someone who lived in a village where staffs or rods were manufactured or used.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Stafton." This entry refers to a place name, likely a village or town in one of the counties surveyed for the great census commissioned by William the Conqueror.
By the 13th century, the name had evolved into the spelling "Staffon," as evidenced by records from the time. One notable example is Richard Staffon, a landowner in Somerset who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of 1230.
In the 14th century, the name appears in connection with a place called Staffon in Leicestershire. In the Subsidy Rolls of 1327, a John de Staffon is listed as a resident of this location.
During the 15th century, the surname Staffon began to spread beyond its initial geographical roots. In 1486, a Thomas Staffon was born in Yorkshire, and his descendants can be traced through parish records in the region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in literature comes from the works of William Shakespeare. In his play "Henry VI, Part 2," a character named Sir Humphrey Staffon is mentioned, though it is unclear if this was a real person or a fictional creation.
Other notable individuals bearing the surname Staffon include Robert Staffon (1602-1678), a merchant and landowner in Gloucestershire, and Elizabeth Staffon (1712-1793), a renowned botanist and author from Warwickshire.
Throughout the centuries, variations in spelling have emerged, such as Staffton, Staughton, and Staughten, reflecting the regional dialects and scribal practices of different areas in England. However, the core meaning and origin of the name have remained consistent, rooted in the ancient Anglo-Saxon language.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Staffon
Among Census respondents with the surname Staffon, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Staffon 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 Staffon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.4% · 106
- Two or more races3.6% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Staffon
Staffon 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
#128,249
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 133
-20 bearers (-13.1%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 20,684 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-23 bearers (-17.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 21,197 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #107,565 | 153 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #128,249 | 133 | 0.05 | -20 bearers (-13.1%) | Down 20,684 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -23 bearers (-17.3%) | Down 21,197 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 Staffon 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 | #128,249 | #149,446 | -16.5% |
| Count | 133 | 110 | -17.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -26.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Staffon bearers went from 133 to 110 (-17.3% change). The surname moved down 21,197 positions in the national ranking, going from #128,249 to #149,446.
FAQ
Staffon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Staffon?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Staffon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Staffon?
Staffon ranks #149,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 110 people with the surname Staffon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Staffon.
Has Staffon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Staffon went from 133 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 23 (-17.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #128,249 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Staffon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Staffon, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are 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 Staffon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.4% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Staffon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.4%), 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 Staffon (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 Staffon mean?
An anglicized version of the Swedish surname Staffansson, meaning "son of Staffan". 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 Staffon (0.04 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 Staffon?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Staffon on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.