2000
#7,059
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,369
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.62
Rare Last name
Utter
An English occupational surname referring to a doorkeeper, gatekeeper, or porter, derived from the Middle English "utter" meaning "outer."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,569 Americans carry the last name Utter. That puts it at #7,972 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.33 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 75,017 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Utter 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.
Bearers in the US
4.6K
1 in 75,017
Census rank
#7,972
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,984 bearers of the surname Utter in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.33 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7972nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Utter, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Utter
The surname Utter is believed to have originated in England, with the earliest records dating back to the 13th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "uttor," meaning "outer" or "more distant," suggesting that the name may have been given to someone who lived on the outskirts of a town or village.
One of the earliest known references to the name Utter can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire, a census-like record from 1273, which mentions a person named Johannes Utter. The Utter surname also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, listing a Richard Utter as a taxpayer.
In the 14th century, the Utter surname appeared in various spellings, such as Uter, Uttur, and Utere, reflecting the fluid nature of name spellings during that time period. Some early examples include John Uter, recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire in 1379, and William Uttur, mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1388.
One notable individual bearing the Utter surname was Sir Thomas Utter, a Member of Parliament for Warwickshire in the early 15th century. He served during the reigns of Henry IV and Henry V, and his name is recorded in the parliamentary rolls from 1413 to 1422.
Another significant figure was Sir William Utter, who lived in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. He was a member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers, one of the oldest livery companies in the City of London, and served as the company's Master in 1518.
In the 16th century, the Utter surname can be found in various parish records and court rolls across England. One example is Thomas Utter, who was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1572, the same town as the famous playwright William Shakespeare.
The Utter surname continued to spread across different regions of England, with notable individuals such as John Utter, a merchant and landowner in Gloucestershire in the 17th century, and Richard Utter, a member of the East India Company in the 18th century.
As the centuries passed, the Utter surname also gained a presence in other parts of the world, particularly in North America, where it was carried by English immigrants and their descendants. Some notable individuals with the Utter surname include Henry Utter, a Revolutionary War soldier from Connecticut, and Benjamin Utter, a pioneer and early settler in Indiana in the 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Utter
Among Census respondents with the surname Utter, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Utter 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 Utter surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 3,657
- Two or more races3.3% · 131
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 116
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 40
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 23
- Black or African American0.4% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Utter
Utter 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
#7,668
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,331
-38 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 1.47
Rank movement Down 609 places
2020
#7,972
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,984
-347 bearers (-8.0%)
Per 100,000 1.33
Rank movement Down 304 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,059 | 4,369 | 1.62 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,668 | 4,331 | 1.47 | -38 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 609 places |
| 2020 | #7,972 | 3,984 | 1.33 | -347 bearers (-8.0%) | Down 304 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 Utter 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 | #7,668 | #7,972 | -4.0% |
| Count | 4,331 | 3,984 | -8.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.47 | 1.33 | -9.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Utter bearers went from 4,331 to 3,984 (-8.0% change). The surname moved down 304 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,668 to #7,972.
FAQ
Utter surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Utter?
Name Census estimates that about 4,569 living Americans carry the surname Utter. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 75,017 residents.
How common is Utter?
Utter ranks #7,972 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.33 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 3,984 people with the surname Utter. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,569), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.33 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.33 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 Utter.
Has Utter become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Utter went from 4,331 recorded bearers to 3,984. That is a decrease of 347 (-8.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,668 to #7,972.
What does the Census say about the background of Utter?
Among Census respondents with the surname Utter, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Utter in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (3,657 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Utter appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Utter (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 Utter mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a doorkeeper, gatekeeper, or porter, derived from the Middle English "utter" meaning "outer." 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 Utter (1.33 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 Utter?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.