2000
#510
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 58,687
First available Census row
Per 100,000 21.76
Uncommon Last name
Stokes
Derived from the Old English word "stoc," referring to a place, settlement, or dwelling.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 67,768 Americans carry the last name Stokes. That puts it at #559 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 19.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 5,058 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stokes 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 Stokes with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
68K
1 in 5,058
Census rank
#559
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
19.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
59K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 59,097 bearers of the surname Stokes in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 19.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 559th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stokes, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.3%. The next largest groups are Black (34.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stokes
The surname Stokes is of English origin and can be traced back to the 12th century. It derives from the Old English word "stoc," meaning a place or a hamlet. The name was initially used to identify someone who lived in or near a stockaded village or hamlet.
One of the earliest known records of the name Stokes appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Stoc" in various counties across England. The Domesday Book was a comprehensive survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror.
In the 13th century, variations of the name, such as Stok, Stokke, and Stokys, were found in various historical records, including the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire and the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Stokes was Sir John Stokes, a prominent lawyer and judge who lived in the late 14th century. He served as the Chief Justice of the Common Pleas from 1370 to 1388.
Another notable figure was Adrianus Stokes, a Dutch-born English clergyman and academic who lived from 1591 to 1672. He was an influential figure in the Church of England and served as the Master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge.
In the 16th century, the name Stokes was associated with several notable individuals, including John Stokes, a Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake in 1555 during the Marian Persecutions in England.
The 17th century saw the rise of Thomas Stokes, an English physician and botanist who lived from 1635 to 1683. He made significant contributions to the study of plants and was one of the founding members of the Royal Society.
In the 18th century, Whitehead Stokes, an English doctor and writer, gained recognition for his work on hygiene and public health. He lived from 1763 to 1838 and was a influential figure in the field of medicine.
The surname Stokes has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Stoke-on-Trent, Stokenchurch, and Stoke Poges, all of which are derived from the Old English word "stoc."
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stokes
Among Census respondents with the surname Stokes, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.3%. The next largest groups are Black (34.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Stokes 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 Stokes surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White56.3% · 33,263
- Black or African American34.5% · 20,385
- Two or more races4.5% · 2,685
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 2,154
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 319
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 291
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stokes
Stokes 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
#542
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 61,639
+2,952 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 20.90
Rank movement Down 32 places
2020
#559
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 59,097
-2,542 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 19.77
Rank movement Down 17 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #510 | 58,687 | 21.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #542 | 61,639 | 20.90 | +2,952 bearers (+5.0%) | Down 32 places |
| 2020 | #559 | 59,097 | 19.77 | -2,542 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 17 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 Stokes 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 | #542 | #559 | -3.1% |
| Count | 61,639 | 59,097 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 20.90 | 19.77 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stokes bearers went from 61,639 to 59,097 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 17 positions in the national ranking, going from #542 to #559.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Stokes
FAQ
Stokes surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stokes?
Name Census estimates that about 67,768 living Americans carry the surname Stokes. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 5,058 residents.
How common is Stokes?
Stokes ranks #559 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 19.77 per 100,000 residents, which is about 20 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 59,097 people with the surname Stokes. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (67,768), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 19.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 19.77 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 20 of them to have the surname Stokes.
Has Stokes become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stokes went from 61,639 recorded bearers to 59,097. That is a decrease of 2,542 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #542 to #559.
What does the Census say about the background of Stokes?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stokes, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.3%. The next largest groups are Black (34.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Stokes in the 2020 Census, accounting for 56.3% (33,263 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stokes appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (56.3%), Black (34.5%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Stokes (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 Stokes mean?
Derived from the Old English word "stoc," referring to a place, settlement, or dwelling. 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 Stokes (19.77 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 common is the surname Stokes?
You can see how common the surname Stokes is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.