2000
#477
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 62,534
First available Census row
Per 100,000 23.18
Uncommon Last name
Tyler
An occupational surname referring to someone who lays tiles or roofs with tiles.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 71,533 Americans carry the last name Tyler. That puts it at #528 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 20.87 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,792 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tyler 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 Tyler with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
72K
1 in 4,792
Census rank
#528
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
20.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
62K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 62,380 bearers of the surname Tyler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 20.87 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 528th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyler, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.0%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tyler
The surname Tyler originated in England during the medieval period. It derives from the occupational term 'tiler', referring to someone who made or laid tiles, usually on roofs. The name comes from the Old English word 'tigele', meaning tile, combined with the agent suffix '-er'.
The earliest known record of the Tyler surname dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Tighelare'. This indicates that the name was well-established in England by the late 11th century.
In the 13th century, the surname was often spelled 'Tyghelere' or 'Tygheler'. By the 14th century, the modern spelling 'Tyler' had emerged, and it became more widespread across various regions of England.
One notable historical figure bearing the Tyler surname was Wat Tyler (c. 1341 – 1381), a leader of the Peasants' Revolt in 1381. He was born in Essex and played a pivotal role in the uprising against the oppressive poll tax imposed by King Richard II.
Another early reference to the name can be found in the 14th-century poem "Piers Plowman" by William Langland, where a character named Tiler is mentioned.
In the 15th century, John Tyler (c. 1430 – 1505) was a prominent English scholar and translator who produced the first English translation of Aristotle's "Nicomachean Ethics".
During the English Civil War in the 17th century, Sir John Tyler (1609 – 1672) was a prominent Parliamentary officer who served under Oliver Cromwell.
One of the most famous Tylers in American history was John Tyler (1790 – 1862), who served as the 10th President of the United States from 1841 to 1845 after the death of William Henry Harrison.
Another notable American with the surname was Moses Coit Tyler (1835 – 1900), a literary historian and writer who authored several books on American literature and history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tyler
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyler, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.0%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Tyler 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 Tyler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.0% · 36,823
- Black or African American30.4% · 18,955
- Two or more races5.1% · 3,204
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 2,189
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 797
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 412
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tyler
Tyler 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
#509
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 66,056
+3,522 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 22.39
Rank movement Down 32 places
2020
#528
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 62,380
-3,676 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 20.87
Rank movement Down 19 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #477 | 62,534 | 23.18 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #509 | 66,056 | 22.39 | +3,522 bearers (+5.6%) | Down 32 places |
| 2020 | #528 | 62,380 | 20.87 | -3,676 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 19 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 Tyler 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 | #509 | #528 | -3.7% |
| Count | 66,056 | 62,380 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 22.39 | 20.87 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tyler bearers went from 66,056 to 62,380 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 19 positions in the national ranking, going from #509 to #528.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Tyler
FAQ
Tyler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tyler?
Name Census estimates that about 71,533 living Americans carry the surname Tyler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,792 residents.
How common is Tyler?
Tyler ranks #528 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 20.87 per 100,000 residents, which is about 21 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 62,380 people with the surname Tyler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (71,533), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 20.87 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 20.87 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 21 of them to have the surname Tyler.
Has Tyler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tyler went from 66,056 recorded bearers to 62,380. That is a decrease of 3,676 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #509 to #528.
What does the Census say about the background of Tyler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyler, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.0%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Tyler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.0% (36,823 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tyler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (59.0%), Black (30.4%), 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 Tyler (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 Tyler mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who lays tiles or roofs with tiles. 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 Tyler (20.87 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 Tyler?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.