2000
#9,085
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,306
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.23
Rare Last name
Stanfill
Derived from a place name referring to a stony pasture or clearing.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,567 Americans carry the last name Stanfill. That puts it at #9,900 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 96,090 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stanfill 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
3.6K
1 in 96,090
Census rank
#9,900
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,111 bearers of the surname Stanfill in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9900th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stanfill, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stanfill
The surname Stanfill is believed to have originated in England, with records dating back to the 16th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Old English words "stan," meaning stone, and "fell," referring to a hill or rocky area. This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived near a rocky hill or in a stony region.
One of the earliest documented references to the name can be found in the Parish Records of Shropshire, England, where a Thomas Stanfill was recorded in 1591. The name also appears in various other historical records from the 16th and 17th centuries, including the Hearth Tax Returns of 1662, which list a John Stanfill in Derbyshire.
Variations of the spelling, such as Stanfell, Stanfel, and Stanfyld, can be found in various medieval records, indicating the evolution of the name over time. Some early bearers of the name include William Stanfill, born in 1612 in Staffordshire, and Robert Stanfill, who was baptized in 1624 in Warwickshire.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Stanfill name was particularly prevalent in the counties of Shropshire, Staffordshire, and Derbyshire, suggesting a concentration of the family in these areas. One notable individual from this period was John Stanfill, a farmer and landowner who lived in Shropshire in the late 18th century.
As the Stanfill family spread across England and eventually to other parts of the world, the name continued to be associated with various individuals. For example, Thomas Stanfill, born in 1795 in Staffordshire, was a prominent businessman and landowner, while James Stanfill, born in 1832 in Derbyshire, was a respected educator and author.
Other notable individuals with the surname Stanfill include William Stanfill, a British soldier who fought in the Crimean War in the 1850s, and Mary Stanfill, a pioneering female physician who practiced in London in the late 19th century.
While the Stanfill name may have originated in England, it has since spread to various other countries, with bearers of the name contributing to various fields and endeavors throughout history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stanfill
Among Census respondents with the surname Stanfill, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Stanfill 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 Stanfill surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.7% · 2,729
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 146
- Two or more races4.4% · 136
- Black or African American1.7% · 52
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 27
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stanfill
Stanfill 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
#9,695
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,346
+40 bearers (+1.2%)
Per 100,000 1.13
Rank movement Down 610 places
2020
#9,900
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,111
-235 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Down 205 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,085 | 3,306 | 1.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,695 | 3,346 | 1.13 | +40 bearers (+1.2%) | Down 610 places |
| 2020 | #9,900 | 3,111 | 1.04 | -235 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 205 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 Stanfill 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 | #9,695 | #9,900 | -2.1% |
| Count | 3,346 | 3,111 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.13 | 1.04 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stanfill bearers went from 3,346 to 3,111 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 205 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,695 to #9,900.
FAQ
Stanfill surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stanfill?
Name Census estimates that about 3,567 living Americans carry the surname Stanfill. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 96,090 residents.
How common is Stanfill?
Stanfill ranks #9,900 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.04 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 3,111 people with the surname Stanfill. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,567), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.04 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 Stanfill.
Has Stanfill become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stanfill went from 3,346 recorded bearers to 3,111. That is a decrease of 235 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,695 to #9,900.
What does the Census say about the background of Stanfill?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stanfill, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Stanfill in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.7% (2,729 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stanfill appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.7%), Hispanic (4.7%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Stanfill (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 Stanfill mean?
Derived from a place name referring to a stony pasture or clearing. 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 Stanfill (1.04 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 Stanfill?
Want to know how many people have the surname Stanfill? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.