Find out how popular the last name Sunshine is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Sunshine.

Sunshine, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Sunshine surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sunshine in America

Sunshine is the 25659th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sunshine surname appeared 961 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Sunshine.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sunshine to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Sunshine

Sunshine is an English surname that originated as a descriptive name given to someone who had a particularly cheerful or sunny disposition. It likely emerged in the late Middle Ages or early modern period, around the 15th or 16th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Old English word "sunne," which means "sun," and the suffix "-shine," which refers to the act of shining or emanating light.

While the surname Sunshine does not have a specific geographic origin, it is thought to have first appeared in various regions of England, where descriptive surnames were commonly adopted. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in parish records and historical documents from the 16th and 17th centuries.

One notable early bearer of the surname was John Sunshine, a merchant from London who was mentioned in records from the late 16th century. Another individual with this surname was William Sunshine, a farmer from Wiltshire, England, who was born in 1634 and is documented in parish records from the mid-17th century.

In the 18th century, the name Sunshine appeared in various parts of England, including Yorkshire, Gloucestershire, and Devonshire. One notable figure from this period was Thomas Sunshine, a philosopher and writer from Bristol, who lived from 1727 to 1798.

As the British Empire expanded, the Sunshine surname also spread to other parts of the world, including North America and Australia. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in America was that of Samuel Sunshine, a settler who arrived in Virginia from England in the late 17th century.

Other notable individuals with the surname Sunshine include:

1. Robert Sunshine (1853-1923), an English businessman and philanthropist known for his contributions to education and social welfare initiatives.
2. Mary Sunshine (1879-1958), an American author and poet whose works celebrated nature and the beauty of the outdoors.
3. John Sunshine (1901-1982), a British botanist and explorer who conducted extensive research on the flora of the Himalayas.
4. Elizabeth Sunshine (1920-2003), an Australian artist renowned for her vibrant landscape paintings capturing the sun-drenched scenery of her home country.
5. Daniel Sunshine (born 1971), a contemporary American writer and journalist known for his travel memoirs and articles exploring the cultural diversity of different regions around the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sunshine

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Sunshine.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Sunshine was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Sunshine has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Sunshine was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Sunshine, please contact us.

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