2000
#40,622
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 507
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.19
Very Rare Last name
Thorley
A locational surname originating from Thorley, England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 679 Americans carry the last name Thorley. That puts it at #40,000 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.20 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 504,793 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Thorley 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 Thorley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
679
1 in 504,793
Census rank
#40,000
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
592
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 592 bearers of the surname Thorley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.20 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 40000th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Thorley, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Black (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Thorley
The surname Thorley is of English origin and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is a locational name derived from one of the several places called Thorley or Thurley, which were found in various counties across England, including Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, and Surrey. The name is believed to have evolved from the Old English words "thorn" and "leah," meaning "thorn clearing" or "thorn wood."
In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are several references to places with similar names, such as "Terlai" in Bedfordshire and "Terleia" in Hertfordshire, which could be early variants of the name Thorley. These entries suggest that the name was already in use during the Norman conquest of England.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Thorley can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Oxfordshire from the year 1230, where a person named William de Thorley is mentioned. Another early example is John de Thurlee, who is listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327.
The name has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. For instance, Sir Robert Thorley (c. 1455-1518) was a wealthy English merchant and Member of Parliament during the reign of King Henry VIII. Another notable figure was Thomas Thorley (1609-1669), an English politician and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament for Hertfordshire.
In the 17th century, John Thorley (1637-1681) was an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works, including "The Present Prospect of the Famous and Admired Eikonoclastes." Additionally, John Thorley (1685-1760) was a prominent English architect responsible for designing several churches and country houses in the Georgian style.
During the 18th century, Samuel Thorley (1719-1796) was a renowned English engraver and printmaker who produced numerous engravings of landscapes and portraits. His work was highly regarded and can be found in various museum collections.
These examples demonstrate the long-standing presence of the surname Thorley in English history, with its origins rooted in the medieval period and its association with notable figures across various fields over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Thorley
Among Census respondents with the surname Thorley, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Black (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Thorley 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 Thorley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.0% · 533
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 24
- Black or African American2.7% · 16
- Two or more races1.7% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Thorley
Thorley 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
#39,960
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 549
+42 bearers (+8.3%)
Per 100,000 0.19
Rank movement Up 662 places
2020
#40,000
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 592
+43 bearers (+7.8%)
Per 100,000 0.20
Rank movement Down 40 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #40,622 | 507 | 0.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #39,960 | 549 | 0.19 | +42 bearers (+8.3%) | Up 662 places |
| 2020 | #40,000 | 592 | 0.20 | +43 bearers (+7.8%) | Down 40 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 Thorley 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 | #39,960 | #40,000 | -0.1% |
| Count | 549 | 592 | 7.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.19 | 0.20 | 4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Thorley bearers went from 549 to 592 (+7.8% change). The surname moved down 40 positions in the national ranking, going from #39,960 to #40,000.
FAQ
Thorley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Thorley?
Name Census estimates that about 679 living Americans carry the surname Thorley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 504,793 residents.
How common is Thorley?
Thorley ranks #40,000 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.20 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 592 people with the surname Thorley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (679), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.2 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.20 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Thorley.
Has Thorley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Thorley went from 549 recorded bearers to 592. That is an increase of 43 (+7.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #39,960 to #40,000.
What does the Census say about the background of Thorley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Thorley, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Black (2.7%). 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 Thorley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.0% (533 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Thorley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.0%), Hispanic (4.1%), Black (2.7%). 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 Thorley (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 Thorley mean?
A locational surname originating from Thorley, England. 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 Thorley (0.20 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 last name Thorley?
If you just want to know how common the surname Thorley is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.