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

Upton, 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 Upton surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Upton in America

Upton is the 2616th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Upton surname appeared 13,769 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Upton.

We can also compare 2010 data for Upton 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.

The history of the last name Upton

The surname Upton has its origins in England, dating back to the 11th century. It is a locational name derived from various places called Upton, a common place name in England that means "upper town" or "higher town." The name is derived from the Old English words "upp" meaning up or higher, and "tun" meaning a settlement or town.

The Upton surname is believed to have first appeared in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive record of landowners and their holdings across England and parts of Wales. This early record suggests that the name was already well-established in various regions of the country by the late 11th century.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Upton surname was Robert de Upton, who was recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire in 1190. Another early reference is found in the Curia Regis Rolls of Norfolk in 1199, which mentions William de Upton.

In the 13th century, there are records of a Richard de Upton, who was a prominent landowner in Warwickshire, and a John de Upton, who served as a Justice of the Peace in Oxfordshire in 1285.

The surname Upton has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. Sir Nicholas Upton (c. 1400-1457) was an English writer and clergyman who authored a treatise on heraldry called "De Studio Militari." John Upton (1711-1760) was an English schoolmaster and classical scholar who wrote extensively on ancient Greek and Roman literature.

Another notable figure was James Upton (1670-1749), an English theologian and scholar who served as the Regius Professor of Hebrew at the University of Oxford. Sir James Upton (1796-1878) was a British Army officer who served in the Peninsular War and the Crimean War, and was knighted for his military service.

In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the Upton surname was John Upton, who was born in England and settled in Virginia in the 17th century. Several members of the Upton family played significant roles in the American Revolutionary War, including Colonel John Upton, who fought at the Battle of Monmouth in 1778.

The surname Upton has also been associated with various place names and older spellings of place names. For example, the village of Upton-upon-Severn in Worcestershire, England, was formerly known as Upton Episcopi, reflecting its connection to the Bishop of Worcester. Similarly, the town of Upton in Berkshire was once called Upton Regis, meaning "Upton of the King."

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Upton

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

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 Upton was:

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

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

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

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