2000
#5,563
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,734
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.13
Rare Last name
Tyrrell
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Tirell," meaning "descendant of Tirell," a personal name of uncertain origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,363 Americans carry the last name Tyrrell. That puts it at #5,973 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 53,867 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tyrrell 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 Tyrrell with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.4K
1 in 53,867
Census rank
#5,973
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,549 bearers of the surname Tyrrell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5973rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyrrell, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tyrrell
The surname Tyrrell originates from Normandy in northern France. It is derived from the Old French personal name Touri or Turel, which in turn comes from the Germanic name Theodoric, meaning 'ruler of the people'. The name was brought to England after the Norman Conquest of 1066.
One of the earliest records of the name is in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as Tirel and Turell. It is thought to refer to landowners or tenants in the counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, and Buckinghamshire.
The Tyrrell family later established themselves as lords of the manor of Beeches in Essex. Sir Walter Tyrrell (c. 1095 – c. 1100) was a Norman nobleman who was implicated in the death of William II (William Rufus), King of England, in a hunting accident in the New Forest in 1100.
Another notable figure was Sir James Tyrrell (c. 1455 – 1502), an English knight who served under King Richard III. He was accused of being involved in the murder of the Princes in the Tower, Edward V and his younger brother Richard, Duke of York.
In the 16th century, Sir Thomas Tyrrell (c. 1594 – 1672) was an English landowner and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Essex. He was a supporter of the Parliamentarian cause during the English Civil War.
During the 17th century, Sir Timothy Tyrrell (1617 – 1701) was an Irish lawyer and landowner who served as Lord Chief Justice of Ireland from 1689 to 1691.
A more recent example is the English actor Jason Tyrrell (born 1969), best known for his roles in television shows such as EastEnders and Casualty.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tyrrell
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyrrell, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Tyrrell 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 Tyrrell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.4% · 4,961
- Two or more races4.0% · 224
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 189
- Black or African American2.1% · 115
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 44
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 16
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tyrrell
Tyrrell 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
#5,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,788
+54 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 1.96
Rank movement Down 385 places
2020
#5,973
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,549
-239 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 1.86
Rank movement Down 25 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,563 | 5,734 | 2.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,948 | 5,788 | 1.96 | +54 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 385 places |
| 2020 | #5,973 | 5,549 | 1.86 | -239 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 25 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 Tyrrell 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 | #5,948 | #5,973 | -0.4% |
| Count | 5,788 | 5,549 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.96 | 1.86 | -5.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tyrrell bearers went from 5,788 to 5,549 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 25 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,948 to #5,973.
FAQ
Tyrrell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tyrrell?
Name Census estimates that about 6,363 living Americans carry the surname Tyrrell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 53,867 residents.
How common is Tyrrell?
Tyrrell ranks #5,973 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.86 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,549 people with the surname Tyrrell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,363), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.86 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Tyrrell.
Has Tyrrell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tyrrell went from 5,788 recorded bearers to 5,549. That is a decrease of 239 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,948 to #5,973.
What does the Census say about the background of Tyrrell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyrrell, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Tyrrell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.4% (4,961 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tyrrell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.4%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Tyrrell (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 Tyrrell mean?
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Tirell," meaning "descendant of Tirell," a personal name of uncertain origin. 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 Tyrrell (1.86 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 Tyrrell?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.