2000
#10,923
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,673
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.99
Rare Last name
Trotman
An English occupational surname for a messenger or courier, derived from the Old French word "trotier" meaning "runner."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,416 Americans carry the last name Trotman. That puts it at #10,285 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.00 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 100,338 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Trotman 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 Trotman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.4K
1 in 100,338
Census rank
#10,285
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,979 bearers of the surname Trotman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.00 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10285th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Trotman, the largest self-reported group is Black at 58.9%. The next largest groups are White (29.5%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Trotman
The surname Trotman is of English origin and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old English words "trot" meaning to walk or tread, and "man" referring to a person. The name likely referred to someone who travelled frequently on foot or was a messenger.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, where a William Troteman is listed. This suggests the name was already established in the region by the late 13th century.
In the 14th century, the surname appears in various records such as the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield from 1317, which mentions a Robert Trotteman. The name also appears in the Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire from 1379, where a Johannes Trotman is recorded.
The Trotman surname is believed to have originated in the counties of Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, and Somerset in the south of England. It was particularly prevalent in the village of Nettleton in Wiltshire, where the name can be traced back to the 16th century.
One notable individual with the surname was Thomas Trotman (c.1635-1703), an English Quaker who was imprisoned several times for his beliefs during the 17th century. Another was John Trotman (1711-1782), a Welsh Anglican priest and author.
Other historical figures include William Trotman (1766-1835), an English surgeon and medical writer, and George Trotman (1786-1861), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars.
The surname has also been recorded with various spellings over the centuries, such as Trottman, Trautman, and Troutman, reflecting regional dialects and variations in pronunciation.
While not as common today, the Trotman surname has left its mark on history, with notable individuals bearing the name across various fields, reflecting its origins as a descriptive occupational surname from medieval England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Trotman
Among Census respondents with the surname Trotman, the largest self-reported group is Black at 58.9%. The next largest groups are White (29.5%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Trotman 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 Trotman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American58.9% · 1,754
- White29.5% · 878
- Two or more races5.1% · 153
- Hispanic or Latino5.1% · 151
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Trotman
Trotman 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
#10,029
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,212
+539 bearers (+20.2%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Up 894 places
2020
#10,285
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,979
-233 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 1.00
Rank movement Down 256 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,923 | 2,673 | 0.99 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,029 | 3,212 | 1.09 | +539 bearers (+20.2%) | Up 894 places |
| 2020 | #10,285 | 2,979 | 1.00 | -233 bearers (-7.3%) | 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 Trotman 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 | #10,029 | #10,285 | -2.6% |
| Count | 3,212 | 2,979 | -7.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.09 | 1.00 | -8.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Trotman bearers went from 3,212 to 2,979 (-7.3% change). The surname moved down 256 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,029 to #10,285.
FAQ
Trotman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Trotman?
Name Census estimates that about 3,416 living Americans carry the surname Trotman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 100,338 residents.
How common is Trotman?
Trotman ranks #10,285 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.00 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 2,979 people with the surname Trotman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,416), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.00 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 Trotman.
Has Trotman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Trotman went from 3,212 recorded bearers to 2,979. That is a decrease of 233 (-7.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,029 to #10,285.
What does the Census say about the background of Trotman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Trotman, the largest self-reported group is Black at 58.9%. The next largest groups are White (29.5%) and Two or More Races (5.1%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Trotman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.9% (1,754 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Trotman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (58.9%), White (29.5%), Two or More Races (5.1%). 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 Trotman (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 Trotman mean?
An English occupational surname for a messenger or courier, derived from the Old French word "trotier" meaning "runner." 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 Trotman (1.00 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 common is the surname Trotman?
You can see how common the surname Trotman is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.