2000
#11,257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,578
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.96
Rare Last name
Swords
An occupational surname referring to a soldier, swordsman, or one who makes or sells swords.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,854 Americans carry the last name Swords. That puts it at #11,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.83 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 120,096 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Swords 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 Swords with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 120,096
Census rank
#11,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,489 bearers of the surname Swords in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.83 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Swords, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Swords
The surname Swords originates from Ireland and can be traced back to the 11th century. It is an Anglo-Norman name derived from the Old French word "espees," meaning swords or blades. This name likely referred to a person who was a swordmaker or a soldier skilled with swords.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Swords surname is found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled as "Sweord" and "Swerd." This medieval census suggests that the name was present in England shortly after the Norman Conquest of 1066.
In Ireland, the name is closely associated with the town of Swords, located in County Dublin. The town's name is believed to have originated from the Irish word "Sord," which also means "swords." This connection suggests that the Swords family may have originally hailed from or held lands in this area.
Notable individuals with the surname Swords include:
1. Sir Ralph Swords (c. 1300-1370), an English knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War and served as a commander under Edward III.
2. John Swords (c. 1550-1613), an Irish Catholic bishop who served as the Archbishop of Armagh from 1586 until his death.
3. Thomas Swords (1783-1868), an Irish-born American Catholic priest and educator who founded several schools and colleges in the United States.
4. James Swords (1765-1846), an Irish-American businessman and political figure who served as the Mayor of New York City from 1808 to 1809.
5. Michael Swords (1836-1914), an Irish-born American Civil War soldier who received the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Gettysburg.
The Swords surname has also been associated with various place names throughout Ireland and England, such as Swords in County Dublin, Swords End in Hertfordshire, and Swordsland in Norfolk.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Swords
Among Census respondents with the surname Swords, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Swords 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 Swords surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.0% · 2,314
- Two or more races4.0% · 99
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 49
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 17
- Black or African American0.3% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Swords
Swords 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
#11,877
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,636
+58 bearers (+2.2%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Down 620 places
2020
#11,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,489
-147 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 112 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,257 | 2,578 | 0.96 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,877 | 2,636 | 0.89 | +58 bearers (+2.2%) | Down 620 places |
| 2020 | #11,989 | 2,489 | 0.83 | -147 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 112 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 Swords 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 | #11,877 | #11,989 | -0.9% |
| Count | 2,636 | 2,489 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.83 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Swords bearers went from 2,636 to 2,489 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 112 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,877 to #11,989.
FAQ
Swords surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Swords?
Name Census estimates that about 2,854 living Americans carry the surname Swords. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 120,096 residents.
How common is Swords?
Swords ranks #11,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.83 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 2,489 people with the surname Swords. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,854), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.83 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.83 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 Swords.
Has Swords become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Swords went from 2,636 recorded bearers to 2,489. That is a decrease of 147 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,877 to #11,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Swords?
Among Census respondents with the surname Swords, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Swords in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (2,314 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Swords appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.0%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Swords (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 Swords mean?
An occupational surname referring to a soldier, swordsman, or one who makes or sells swords. 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 Swords (0.83 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 Swords?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.