2000
#5,707
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,570
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.06
Rare Last name
Vestal
Derived from a place name meaning "of Vestal," referring to someone from Vestal, New York.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,985 Americans carry the last name Vestal. That puts it at #6,272 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 57,269 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vestal 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
6.0K
1 in 57,269
Census rank
#6,272
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,219 bearers of the surname Vestal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6272nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vestal, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vestal
The surname Vestal originated in England during the late 12th century. It derived from the Old English word "vest" or "veste," which meant a garment or a robe. The name likely referred to someone who made or sold vestments, such as a tailor or clothier.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Vestal surname appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1194, where a Richard Vestal was mentioned. The name was also found in various other medieval records, including the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1279, which listed a Roger le Vestiar.
In the 14th century, the Vestal surname was particularly prevalent in the counties of Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. A notable early bearer of the name was John Vestal, a landowner in Oxfordshire who was mentioned in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1334.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Vestal surname began to spread across England, with several variations in spelling, including Vestall, Vestell, and Vestill. One notable figure from this era was William Vestal, a merchant and member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers in London, born in 1568 and died in 1642.
In the 18th century, the Vestal family established themselves in the town of Bournemouth, Dorset. A prominent member of this family was Thomas Vestal (1702-1783), who served as the town's mayor and was instrumental in the development of the local fishing industry.
Another notable Vestal was Sir Francis Vestal (1765-1842), a British naval officer who played a crucial role in several battles during the Napoleonic Wars. He was knighted for his bravery and distinguished service in 1815.
As the Vestal surname spread further across England, it also found its way to other parts of the British Isles and eventually to the American colonies in the 17th and 18th centuries. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name in America include John Vestal, who arrived in Virginia in 1635, and Thomas Vestal, who settled in Maryland in 1665.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vestal
Among Census respondents with the surname Vestal, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Vestal 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 Vestal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.5% · 4,620
- Two or more races4.0% · 208
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 155
- Black or African American2.9% · 151
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 59
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 26
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vestal
Vestal 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
#6,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,614
+44 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 1.90
Rank movement Down 401 places
2020
#6,272
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,219
-395 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 1.75
Rank movement Down 164 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,707 | 5,570 | 2.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,108 | 5,614 | 1.90 | +44 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 401 places |
| 2020 | #6,272 | 5,219 | 1.75 | -395 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 164 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 Vestal 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 | #6,108 | #6,272 | -2.7% |
| Count | 5,614 | 5,219 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.90 | 1.75 | -8.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vestal bearers went from 5,614 to 5,219 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 164 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,108 to #6,272.
FAQ
Vestal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vestal?
Name Census estimates that about 5,985 living Americans carry the surname Vestal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 57,269 residents.
How common is Vestal?
Vestal ranks #6,272 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.75 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 5,219 people with the surname Vestal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,985), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.75 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 Vestal.
Has Vestal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vestal went from 5,614 recorded bearers to 5,219. That is a decrease of 395 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,108 to #6,272.
What does the Census say about the background of Vestal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vestal, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Vestal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.5% (4,620 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vestal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.5%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Vestal (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 Vestal mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "of Vestal," referring to someone from Vestal, New York. 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 Vestal (1.75 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 common is the surname Vestal?
Find out how many people have the last name Vestal on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.