2000
#7,299
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,210
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.56
Rare Last name
Trott
An English occupational surname referring to a messenger or courier, derived from the Old English word "trot."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,484 Americans carry the last name Trott. That puts it at #8,112 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 76,439 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Trott 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 Trott with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.5K
1 in 76,439
Census rank
#8,112
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,910 bearers of the surname Trott in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8112th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Trott, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Trott
The surname Trott can be traced back to the 11th century in England, originating from the Old French word "trot," meaning "to trot" or "to walk quickly." It was likely a nickname given to someone who walked with a distinctive gait or speed.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Trottus" in the county of Wiltshire. This suggests that the name was already established in parts of southern England by the late 11th century.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms, including Trot, Trotte, and Trott, in historical records from counties such as Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, and Somerset. These variations reflect the regional spellings and pronunciations of the time.
During the 14th and 15th centuries, the Trott surname began to spread across England, with notable figures such as John Trott (c. 1330-1399), a landowner in Gloucestershire, and William Trott (c. 1420-1492), a merchant from Bristol.
In the 16th century, the name was associated with several prominent individuals, including Sir Nicholas Trott (1552-1624), a member of the English gentry and landowner in Oxfordshire, and John Trott (1585-1672), a Puritan clergyman who emigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony in the early 17th century.
As the surname spread to other parts of Britain and beyond, it also took on variations such as Trottman, Trottier, and Trotter. For instance, Sir John Trotter (1669-1740) was a Scottish politician and landowner, while William Trotter (1772-1833) was a British naval officer and explorer who sailed with Captain James Cook.
Other notable figures with the Trott surname include Benjamin Trott (1770-1859), an English architect and surveyor, and Sir William Trott (1855-1942), a British civil servant and colonial administrator who served as Governor of the Bahamas and Bermuda in the early 20th century.
Overall, the Trott surname has a rich history spanning several centuries and regions, reflecting its evolution from a descriptive nickname to a well-established family name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Trott
Among Census respondents with the surname Trott, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Trott 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 Trott surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.7% · 3,312
- Black or African American6.1% · 237
- Two or more races4.0% · 156
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 142
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 39
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 24
Timeline
Historical Census data for Trott
Trott 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
#7,399
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,498
+288 bearers (+6.8%)
Per 100,000 1.52
Rank movement Down 100 places
2020
#8,112
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,910
-588 bearers (-13.1%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Down 713 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,299 | 4,210 | 1.56 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,399 | 4,498 | 1.52 | +288 bearers (+6.8%) | Down 100 places |
| 2020 | #8,112 | 3,910 | 1.31 | -588 bearers (-13.1%) | Down 713 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 Trott 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 | #7,399 | #8,112 | -9.6% |
| Count | 4,498 | 3,910 | -13.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.52 | 1.31 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Trott bearers went from 4,498 to 3,910 (-13.1% change). The surname moved down 713 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,399 to #8,112.
FAQ
Trott surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Trott?
Name Census estimates that about 4,484 living Americans carry the surname Trott. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 76,439 residents.
How common is Trott?
Trott ranks #8,112 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.31 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 3,910 people with the surname Trott. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,484), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.31 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 Trott.
Has Trott become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Trott went from 4,498 recorded bearers to 3,910. That is a decrease of 588 (-13.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,399 to #8,112.
What does the Census say about the background of Trott?
Among Census respondents with the surname Trott, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Trott in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.7% (3,312 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Trott appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.7%), Black (6.1%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Trott (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 Trott mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a messenger or courier, derived from the Old English word "trot." 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 Trott (1.31 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 Trott?
You can see how many people have the last name Trott on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.