Turnbo last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Turnbo

An English surname derived from a geographic location name.

Turnbo, 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 Turnbo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Turnbo in America

Turnbo is the 37341st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Turnbo surname appeared 597 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 Turnbo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Turnbo 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 37341 34904 6.75%
Count 597 612 -2.48%
Proportion per 100k 0.20 0.23 -13.95%

The history of the last name Turnbo

The surname Turnbo is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to derive from the Old English words "tyrn" meaning "a turn or winding" and "bol" meaning "a dwelling place." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a bend in a road or river.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where a person named Torne is listed as a landowner in Nottinghamshire. This spelling variation provides evidence that the name existed in England before the Norman Conquest.

During the 13th century, various spellings of the name appeared in historical records, including Turneboll, Turnebole, and Turnebolle. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and the inconsistent spelling practices of the time.

In the 14th century, the surname Turnbo emerged as a more standardized form. One notable bearer of the name during this period was John Turnbo, a merchant from Bristol who is mentioned in trade records from the year 1379.

The 16th century saw the rise of a prominent Turnbo family in Derbyshire. William Turnbo (1510-1572) was a wealthy landowner and magistrate who served as the High Sheriff of Derbyshire in 1562.

Another well-known figure was Sir Thomas Turnbo (1588-1654), a English soldier and politician who fought for the Parliamentarian forces during the English Civil War. He was knighted by Oliver Cromwell in 1645 for his military service.

In the 18th century, the Turnbo name gained recognition through the work of the Reverend John Turnbo (1723-1801), an Anglican clergyman and author who wrote several influential theological works.

A notable American bearer of the Turnbo surname was Silas Crail Turnbo (1844-1925), a renowned artist and illustrator from Arkansas. He is best known for his detailed drawings and sketches depicting life in the Ozark Mountains.

While the Turnbo surname is relatively uncommon today, its long history can be traced back to medieval England, where it likely originated as a descriptive name for someone living near a winding geographical feature.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Turnbo

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

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 Turnbo was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 66.67% 398
Non-Hispanic Black Only 29.65% 177
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.51% 15
Hispanic Origin 1.17% 7

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 Turnbo has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 66.67% 67.97% -1.93%
Black 29.65% 29.41% 0.81%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Two or More Races 2.51% 1.14% 75.07%
Hispanic 1.17% 1.47% -22.73%

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 Turnbo was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

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"Turnbo last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on July 7, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/turnbo-surname-popularity/.

"Turnbo last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/turnbo-surname-popularity/. Accessed 7 July, 2025

Turnbo last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/turnbo-surname-popularity/.

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