2000
#9,742
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,062
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.14
Rare Last name
Standish
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "stony park" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,476 Americans carry the last name Standish. That puts it at #10,135 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.01 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 98,606 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Standish 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 Standish with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.5K
1 in 98,606
Census rank
#10,135
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,031 bearers of the surname Standish in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.01 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10135th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Standish, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Standish
The surname Standish has its roots in England, originating from the village of Standish near Wigan in Lancashire. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "stan" meaning stone and "disc" meaning a flat circular surface, referring to a stone disc or millstone.
The earliest recorded occurrence of the name Standish can be traced back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Stanedis". This suggests that the name was already well-established in the area by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Ralph de Standish, who lived in the 13th century and was recorded as holding lands in Standish during the reign of King John (1199-1216).
In the 14th century, the Standish family rose to prominence, with Sir Ralph de Standish serving as a knight and member of Parliament during the reigns of Edward III and Richard II. His son, also named Ralph, was knighted for his military service and served as the Sheriff of Lancashire in 1395.
Another notable figure from the Standish family was Miles Standish (c. 1584-1656), a military officer who was hired by the Pilgrims to serve as the military leader of the Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts. He played a crucial role in the colony's survival and defense against potential threats.
In the 17th century, the Standish name spread beyond Lancashire, with branches of the family settling in other parts of England and even venturing to Ireland. One such individual was Thomas Standish (1615-1693), a Royalist officer who fought for King Charles I during the English Civil War.
The Standish surname has also been associated with various place names, such as Standish Hall, an historic manor house in Wigan, and Standish Lower Ground, a former area of Manchester.
Other notable individuals bearing the Standish name include Frank Hall Standish (1799-1835), an English painter known for his landscape works, and David Standish (1959-), a British composer and musician.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Standish
Among Census respondents with the surname Standish, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Standish 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 Standish surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 2,784
- Two or more races2.7% · 82
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 75
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 55
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 28
- Black or African American0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Standish
Standish 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
#10,099
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,189
+127 bearers (+4.1%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Down 357 places
2020
#10,135
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,031
-158 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 1.01
Rank movement Down 36 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,742 | 3,062 | 1.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,099 | 3,189 | 1.08 | +127 bearers (+4.1%) | Down 357 places |
| 2020 | #10,135 | 3,031 | 1.01 | -158 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 36 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 Standish 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 | #10,099 | #10,135 | -0.4% |
| Count | 3,189 | 3,031 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 1.01 | -6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Standish bearers went from 3,189 to 3,031 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 36 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,099 to #10,135.
FAQ
Standish surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Standish?
Name Census estimates that about 3,476 living Americans carry the surname Standish. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 98,606 residents.
How common is Standish?
Standish ranks #10,135 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.01 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 3,031 people with the surname Standish. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,476), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.01 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.01 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 Standish.
Has Standish become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Standish went from 3,189 recorded bearers to 3,031. That is a decrease of 158 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,099 to #10,135.
What does the Census say about the background of Standish?
Among Census respondents with the surname Standish, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Standish in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (2,784 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Standish appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Two or More Races (2.7%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Standish (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 Standish mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "stony park" in Old English. 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 Standish (1.01 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 have the surname Standish?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.