2000
#13,702
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,030
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.75
Rare Last name
Tarlton
Derived from a place name meaning "tarn hill" or "pool hill" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,213 Americans carry the last name Tarlton. That puts it at #14,767 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.65 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 154,882 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tarlton 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 Tarlton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.2K
1 in 154,882
Census rank
#14,767
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,930 bearers of the surname Tarlton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.65 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14767th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tarlton, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.3%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tarlton
The surname Tarlton originates from England, and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is a locational name derived from the place name Tarlton, which is found in several counties across England, including Gloucestershire, Nottinghamshire, and Berkshire. The name is believed to come from the Old English words "tær" meaning torn or tattered, and "tun" meaning an enclosure or settlement, suggesting it may have referred to a settlement or farm with a torn or dilapidated fence or boundary.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1275, which mentioned a Richard de Tarlton. The Tarlton surname also appears in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1292, indicating its presence in various parts of England during the medieval period.
In the 16th century, the name gained fame through the comedic actor Richard Tarlton, who was born around 1530 and died in 1588. He was a renowned clown and one of the most popular entertainers of his time, performing in plays and entertainments at the court of Queen Elizabeth I. His fame helped to further establish the Tarlton surname in English history.
Another notable figure was John Tarlton, a 17th-century English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Gloucestershire in 1628. He was born in 1592 and died in 1642.
In the 18th century, Samuel Tarlton (1752-1834) was a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars. He rose to the rank of Admiral and was knighted for his service.
Moving into the 19th century, John Tarlton (1804-1886) was a British architect and surveyor who worked on several notable projects, including the design of Croydon Town Hall in London.
Throughout its history, the Tarlton surname has been associated with various locations in England, including the villages of Tarlton in Gloucestershire and Nottinghamshire, as well as the manor of Tarlton in Berkshire. While the name has evolved and spread over the centuries, its roots can be traced back to these early place names and their Old English origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tarlton
Among Census respondents with the surname Tarlton, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.3%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Tarlton 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 Tarlton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.5% · 1,651
- Black or African American6.3% · 122
- Two or more races4.5% · 87
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 60
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tarlton
Tarlton 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
#14,591
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,040
+10 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Down 889 places
2020
#14,767
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,930
-110 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Down 176 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,702 | 2,030 | 0.75 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,591 | 2,040 | 0.69 | +10 bearers (+0.5%) | Down 889 places |
| 2020 | #14,767 | 1,930 | 0.65 | -110 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 176 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 Tarlton 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 | #14,591 | #14,767 | -1.2% |
| Count | 2,040 | 1,930 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.69 | 0.65 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tarlton bearers went from 2,040 to 1,930 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 176 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,591 to #14,767.
FAQ
Tarlton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tarlton?
Name Census estimates that about 2,213 living Americans carry the surname Tarlton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 154,882 residents.
How common is Tarlton?
Tarlton ranks #14,767 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.65 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 1,930 people with the surname Tarlton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,213), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.65 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.65 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 Tarlton.
Has Tarlton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tarlton went from 2,040 recorded bearers to 1,930. That is a decrease of 110 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,591 to #14,767.
What does the Census say about the background of Tarlton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tarlton, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.3%) 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 Tarlton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.5% (1,651 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tarlton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.5%), Black (6.3%), 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 Tarlton (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 Tarlton mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "tarn hill" or "pool hill" in Old English. 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 Tarlton (0.65 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 Tarlton?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.