Tibbitt last name popularity, history, and meaning

Find out how popular the last name Tibbitt is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Tibbitt.

Meaning of Tibbitt

A locational surname referring to someone from a place name containing the Old English word "tib" meaning a small clearing or meadow.

Tibbitt, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Tibbitt surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tibbitt in America

Tibbitt is the 104602nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tibbitt surname appeared 171 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Tibbitt.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tibbitt to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

20102000Change (%)
Rank1046021037060.86%
Count1711606.65%
Proportion per 100k0.060.060.00%

The history of the last name Tibbitt

The surname Tibbitt has its origins in England and can be traced back to the late 11th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English personal name "Theobald", which means "bold people". The earliest recorded spelling of the name is found in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Tiebbode".

The name was initially concentrated in the counties of Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire, where several villages and hamlets bore variations of the name, such as Tebbworth and Tebberidge. These place names likely influenced the development of the surname Tibbitt.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Sir John Tibbitt, a knight who fought alongside King Edward III in the Battle of Crécy during the Hundred Years' War in 1346. Another notable figure was William Tibbitt, a wealthy merchant from Colchester, Essex, who lived in the early 15th century and was known for his extensive trade with the Low Countries.

In the 16th century, the name was well-established in the county of Somerset, where a family of Tibbitts owned lands and properties in the village of Curry Rivel. One member of this family, Thomas Tibbitt (1542-1609), was a renowned scholar and linguist who served as a tutor to the children of King James I.

During the English Civil War, Captain Richard Tibbitt (1615-1679) was a staunch Royalist who fought for King Charles I. After the Restoration, he was rewarded with lands in Wiltshire for his loyalty.

Another notable bearer of the name was Sir George Tibbitt (1737-1812), a prominent politician and businessman from Yorkshire who served as a Member of Parliament for the city of York from 1784 to 1796.

These examples illustrate the long and distinguished history of the surname Tibbitt in England, with bearers of the name making significant contributions in various fields throughout the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tibbitt

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Tibbitt.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

  1. White only
  2. Black only
  3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
  4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
  5. Hispanic
  6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Tibbitt was:

Race/EthnicityPercentageTotal Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only95.91%164
Non-Hispanic Black Only0.00%0
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native0.00%0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races3.51%6
Hispanic Origin(S)%(S)

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Tibbitt has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

20102000Change (%)
White95.91%97.50%-1.64%
Black0.00%(S)%(S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander(S)%(S)%(S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.00%0.00%0.00%
Two or More Races3.51%(S)%(S)%
Hispanic(S)%0.00%(S)%

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Tibbitt was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Tibbitt, please contact us.

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