2000
#13,311
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.78
Rare Last name
Tindle
Derived from a place name meaning "Tyndale's lea," referring to a meadow or clearing belonging to someone named Tyndale.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,368 Americans carry the last name Tindle. That puts it at #13,983 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 144,744 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tindle 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 Tindle with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 144,744
Census rank
#13,983
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,065 bearers of the surname Tindle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13983rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tindle, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tindle
The surname Tindle originated in England during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "tyndel," which means "a small piece of dry wood or kindling." This suggests that the name may have been an occupational surname for someone who worked with wood, such as a forester or a woodcutter.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tindle can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1301, where a person named Robert Tyndell is listed. The surname also appears in various other historical records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from the late 13th century, where a William Tyndel is mentioned.
During the 16th century, the surname Tindle was particularly prevalent in the counties of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Nottinghamshire. It is believed that the name may have originated from the village of Tindall in Yorkshire, which was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Tindel."
Some notable individuals with the surname Tindle throughout history include:
1. John Tindle (c. 1580-1645), an English clergyman who served as the rector of Dry Drayton in Cambridgeshire.
2. William Tindle (1635-1705), a British merchant and landowner who acquired significant properties in Gloucestershire.
3. Elizabeth Tindle (1737-1809), an English author and poet, known for her collection of poems titled "Poetical Attempts" published in 1793.
4. Thomas Tindle (1805-1875), a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. Mary Moorfields.
5. Henry Tindle (1850-1918), a prominent English industrialist and entrepreneur who founded the Tindle Newspaper Group, which published several regional newspapers in the United Kingdom.
The name Tindle has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Tindle End in Warwickshire, and Tindle Meadows in Nottinghamshire. Additionally, variations in spelling, such as Tindall, Tyndall, and Tindell, have been recorded throughout history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tindle
Among Census respondents with the surname Tindle, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Tindle 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 Tindle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.6% · 1,706
- Black or African American9.5% · 196
- Two or more races3.7% · 77
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 61
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tindle
Tindle 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
#13,727
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,205
+105 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 416 places
2020
#13,983
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,065
-140 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Down 256 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,311 | 2,100 | 0.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,727 | 2,205 | 0.75 | +105 bearers (+5.0%) | Down 416 places |
| 2020 | #13,983 | 2,065 | 0.69 | -140 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 256 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 Tindle 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 | #13,727 | #13,983 | -1.9% |
| Count | 2,205 | 2,065 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.75 | 0.69 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tindle bearers went from 2,205 to 2,065 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 256 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,727 to #13,983.
FAQ
Tindle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tindle?
Name Census estimates that about 2,368 living Americans carry the surname Tindle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 144,744 residents.
How common is Tindle?
Tindle ranks #13,983 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.69 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 2,065 people with the surname Tindle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,368), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.69 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 Tindle.
Has Tindle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tindle went from 2,205 recorded bearers to 2,065. That is a decrease of 140 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,727 to #13,983.
What does the Census say about the background of Tindle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tindle, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Tindle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.6% (1,706 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tindle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.6%), Black (9.5%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Tindle (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 Tindle mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "Tyndale's lea," referring to a meadow or clearing belonging to someone named Tyndale. 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 Tindle (0.69 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 Tindle?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.