2000
#444
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 66,853
First available Census row
Per 100,000 24.78
Uncommon Last name
Townsend
An English locational surname referring to someone who lived at the outer edges of a town.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 76,249 Americans carry the last name Townsend. That puts it at #492 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 22.25 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,495 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Townsend 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 Townsend with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
76K
1 in 4,495
Census rank
#492
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
22.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
66K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 66,493 bearers of the surname Townsend in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 22.25 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 492nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Townsend, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Black (25.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Townsend
The surname Townsend is of English origin, derived from the words "town" and "send," which together mean "dweller at the town's end." The name first emerged in the 12th century and was initially found in areas such as Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Townsend surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1191, where a William de Tunessende is listed. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 also contain references to individuals with the Townsend name, including Roger de Touneshende and John de Tuneshende.
The Domesday Book, compiled in 1086, does not specifically mention the Townsend surname, but it does include various place names that could have given rise to the name, such as Tunestede and Tunestalle.
Notable individuals bearing the Townsend surname throughout history include:
1. Thomas Townsend (c. 1597-1667), an English colonist who co-founded the town of Oyster Bay, Long Island, in what is now New York.
2. Joseph Townsend (1739-1816), an English clergyman and author best known for his work "A Dissertation on the Poor Laws."
3. Mary Townsend (1789-1863), an English writer and diarist whose diaries provided insights into the social life of the Regency era.
4. George Townsend (1788-1857), an English writer and clergyman who wrote extensively on various subjects, including literature, theology, and travel.
5. Charles Townsend (1725-1767), an English statesman and Chancellor of the Exchequer who introduced the Townshend Acts, which imposed taxes on the American colonies and contributed to the tensions leading to the American Revolution.
The Townsend surname has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Townshend in Norfolk, Townsend in Hertfordshire, and Townshend in Dorset. These place names likely derived from the same linguistic roots as the surname itself, reflecting the locations where early bearers of the name lived or originated from.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Townsend
Among Census respondents with the surname Townsend, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Black (25.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Townsend 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 Townsend surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.6% · 43,595
- Black or African American25.6% · 17,044
- Two or more races4.2% · 2,823
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 2,167
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 449
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 415
Timeline
Historical Census data for Townsend
Townsend 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
#483
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 69,360
+2,507 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 23.51
Rank movement Down 39 places
2020
#492
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 66,493
-2,867 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 22.25
Rank movement Down 9 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #444 | 66,853 | 24.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #483 | 69,360 | 23.51 | +2,507 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 39 places |
| 2020 | #492 | 66,493 | 22.25 | -2,867 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 9 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 Townsend 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 | #483 | #492 | -1.9% |
| Count | 69,360 | 66,493 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 23.51 | 22.25 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Townsend bearers went from 69,360 to 66,493 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 9 positions in the national ranking, going from #483 to #492.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Townsend
FAQ
Townsend surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Townsend?
Name Census estimates that about 76,249 living Americans carry the surname Townsend. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,495 residents.
How common is Townsend?
Townsend ranks #492 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 22.25 per 100,000 residents, which is about 22 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 66,493 people with the surname Townsend. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (76,249), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 22.25 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 22.25 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 22 of them to have the surname Townsend.
Has Townsend become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Townsend went from 69,360 recorded bearers to 66,493. That is a decrease of 2,867 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #483 to #492.
What does the Census say about the background of Townsend?
Among Census respondents with the surname Townsend, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Black (25.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Townsend in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.6% (43,595 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Townsend appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.6%), Black (25.6%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Townsend (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 Townsend mean?
An English locational surname referring to someone who lived at the outer edges of a town. 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 Townsend (22.25 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 Americans have the surname Townsend?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.