2000
#4,584
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,092
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.63
Rare Last name
Talbott
An English occupational surname referring to a messenger or town crier, derived from the Middle English "talebot."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,014 Americans carry the last name Talbott. That puts it at #4,893 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 42,769 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Talbott 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 Talbott with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.0K
1 in 42,769
Census rank
#4,893
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,989 bearers of the surname Talbott in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4893rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Talbott, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.5%. The next largest groups are Black (4.8%) and Hispanic (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Talbott
The surname Talbott is of Anglo-Norman French origin, derived from the Old French word "Talebot" or "Taillebois," which means "hewn wood" or "woodcutter." This occupational surname was initially given to someone who worked as a woodcutter or forester.
The name first appeared in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066, when many French settlers accompanied William the Conqueror and established themselves in various parts of the country. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions individuals with variations such as "Talbot" and "Talebot."
In the 12th century, the Talbots rose to prominence as a noble family in Shropshire, England. One of the earliest recorded members was Hugh Talbot, who lived during the reign of King Henry II (1154-1189). The Talbots played a significant role in English history, with members serving as military leaders, politicians, and landowners.
One notable figure was John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury (c. 1388-1453), a renowned English military commander during the Hundred Years' War against France. He was known as "The English Achilles" for his bravery and skill on the battlefield. Another prominent Talbot was George Talbot, 4th Earl of Shrewsbury (1468-1538), who served as Lord Steward of the Household under King Henry VIII.
The name Talbott also has a connection to place names. For example, the village of Talbot Green in South Wales is believed to be named after the Talbot family, who once owned land in the area. Similarly, the town of Talbotton in Georgia, United States, was named in honor of Matthew Talbot, the governor of Georgia in the late 18th century.
Other notable individuals with the surname Talbott include Joseph Talbott (1779-1871), an American politician who served as the 11th Governor of Kentucky, and William Henry Talbott (1837-1916), a Confederate general during the American Civil War.
Throughout history, the surname Talbott has been spelled in various ways, such as Talbot, Talbott, Talbotte, and Talbut, reflecting the evolution of language and regional variations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Talbott
Among Census respondents with the surname Talbott, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.5%. The next largest groups are Black (4.8%) and Hispanic (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Talbott 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 Talbott surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.5% · 6,042
- Black or African American4.8% · 338
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 274
- Two or more races3.7% · 259
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 47
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 29
Timeline
Historical Census data for Talbott
Talbott 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
#4,787
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,386
+294 bearers (+4.1%)
Per 100,000 2.50
Rank movement Down 203 places
2020
#4,893
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,989
-397 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 2.34
Rank movement Down 106 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,584 | 7,092 | 2.63 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,787 | 7,386 | 2.50 | +294 bearers (+4.1%) | Down 203 places |
| 2020 | #4,893 | 6,989 | 2.34 | -397 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 106 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 Talbott 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 | #4,787 | #4,893 | -2.2% |
| Count | 7,386 | 6,989 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.50 | 2.34 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Talbott bearers went from 7,386 to 6,989 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 106 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,787 to #4,893.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Talbott
FAQ
Talbott surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Talbott?
Name Census estimates that about 8,014 living Americans carry the surname Talbott. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 42,769 residents.
How common is Talbott?
Talbott ranks #4,893 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.34 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,989 people with the surname Talbott. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,014), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.34 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Talbott.
Has Talbott become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Talbott went from 7,386 recorded bearers to 6,989. That is a decrease of 397 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,787 to #4,893.
What does the Census say about the background of Talbott?
Among Census respondents with the surname Talbott, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.5%. The next largest groups are Black (4.8%) and Hispanic (3.9%). 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 Talbott in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.5% (6,042 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Talbott appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.5%), Black (4.8%), Hispanic (3.9%). 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 Talbott (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 Talbott mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a messenger or town crier, derived from the Middle English "talebot." 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 Talbott (2.34 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 Talbott?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.