2000
#13,863
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,999
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.74
Rare Last name
Sweeting
Derived from the Middle English word "sweting," meaning a sweet or amiable person, or from a nickname for a confectioner.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,576 Americans carry the last name Sweeting. That puts it at #13,056 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 133,057 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sweeting 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 Sweeting with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 133,057
Census rank
#13,056
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,246 bearers of the surname Sweeting in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13056th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sweeting, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.2%. The next largest groups are Black (35.1%) and Two or More Races (6.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sweeting
The surname Sweeting is an English name that originated as a nickname for a sweet or amiable person. It is derived from the Middle English word "swete," meaning sweet or pleasant. The name likely first emerged in the 13th or 14th century during the medieval period in England.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Sweeting can be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where it is spelled as "Sweting." This document contains records of landholders and their holdings across various counties in England. The name is also mentioned in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1327, which were records of land transfers and legal agreements.
During the 16th century, the Sweeting surname was particularly prevalent in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Norfolk in East Anglia. It is believed that the name may have originated in this region, where it was possibly derived from a place name or a local dialect term.
Notable individuals with the surname Sweeting throughout history include John Sweeting, a merchant and member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers in London, who lived in the late 16th century. Another prominent figure was William Sweeting, a Puritan minister born in 1608 in Wivenhoe, Essex, who later immigrated to New England and became one of the founders of the town of Branford, Connecticut.
In the 17th century, the surname Sweeting is recorded in various parish registers and court documents across England. For example, a Richard Sweeting was mentioned in the Protestation Returns of 1641-42, which were lists of individuals who pledged allegiance to the Protestant religion during the English Civil War.
Moving into the 18th century, the name Sweeting appeared in various historical records, including the marriage registers of St. George's Chapel in London, where a Thomas Sweeting married Elizabeth Meredith in 1713. Another notable individual was John Sweeting, a merchant and shipowner from Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, who lived from 1719 to 1788.
The 19th century saw the Sweeting surname spread to other parts of the world as emigration increased. One notable figure from this period was Charles Sweeting, an English-born Australian artist and painter who lived from 1838 to 1907 and is known for his landscapes and seascapes depicting the Australian bush and coastline.
While the surname Sweeting is not as common today as it once was, it continues to be found in various English-speaking countries, carrying with it a rich history and cultural significance rooted in its medieval English origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sweeting
Among Census respondents with the surname Sweeting, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.2%. The next largest groups are Black (35.1%) and Two or More Races (6.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Sweeting 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 Sweeting surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White52.2% · 1,172
- Black or African American35.1% · 789
- Two or more races6.6% · 149
- Hispanic or Latino5.1% · 115
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 11
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sweeting
Sweeting 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
#13,887
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,174
+175 bearers (+8.8%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Down 24 places
2020
#13,056
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,246
+72 bearers (+3.3%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Up 831 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,863 | 1,999 | 0.74 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,887 | 2,174 | 0.74 | +175 bearers (+8.8%) | Down 24 places |
| 2020 | #13,056 | 2,246 | 0.75 | +72 bearers (+3.3%) | Up 831 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 Sweeting 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 | #13,887 | #13,056 | 6.0% |
| Count | 2,174 | 2,246 | 3.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.75 | 1.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sweeting bearers went from 2,174 to 2,246 (+3.3% change). The surname moved up 831 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,887 to #13,056.
FAQ
Sweeting surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sweeting?
Name Census estimates that about 2,576 living Americans carry the surname Sweeting. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 133,057 residents.
How common is Sweeting?
Sweeting ranks #13,056 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.75 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 2,246 people with the surname Sweeting. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,576), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.75 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 Sweeting.
Has Sweeting become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sweeting went from 2,174 recorded bearers to 2,246. That is an increase of 72 (+3.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,887 to #13,056.
What does the Census say about the background of Sweeting?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sweeting, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.2%. The next largest groups are Black (35.1%) and Two or More Races (6.6%). 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 Sweeting in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.2% (1,172 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sweeting appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (52.2%), Black (35.1%), Two or More Races (6.6%). 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 Sweeting (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 Sweeting mean?
Derived from the Middle English word "sweting," meaning a sweet or amiable person, or from a nickname for a confectioner. 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 Sweeting (0.75 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 share the surname Sweeting?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.