2000
#11,396
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,536
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.94
Rare Last name
Wainscott
An English locational surname derived from a place in Kent, likely referring to a shelter or cottage made of wainscoting.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,946 Americans carry the last name Wainscott. That puts it at #11,678 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 116,346 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wainscott 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
2.9K
1 in 116,346
Census rank
#11,678
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,569 bearers of the surname Wainscott in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11678th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wainscott, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wainscott
The surname Wainscott is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English words "wægn" meaning wagon and "cot" meaning cottage, referring to a dwelling for those who built or repaired wagons.
The earliest known record of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Wagnecote" in Bedfordshire. This suggests the name was already established in parts of England by the 11th century.
By the 13th century, variations of the name such as Waynscot, Waynescote, and Waynscott were found in various county records across southern England, particularly in Essex, Kent, and Sussex.
One notable early bearer of the name was John Wainscott, a merchant from London who was granted a coat of arms in 1585 by the College of Arms. This indicates the family had achieved a level of prominence and respectability by the late 16th century.
In the 17th century, the name Wainscott appeared in several parish records in the county of Norfolk, including the baptism of Thomas Wainscott in 1643 in the town of Diss.
During the English Civil War, a Captain William Wainscott served in the Parliamentarian forces and was mentioned in dispatches for his bravery at the Battle of Naseby in 1645.
Another notable figure was Sir John Wainscott (1608-1677), a wealthy landowner and Member of Parliament who represented the constituency of Colchester in Essex.
As the name spread across Britain, variations such as Wainscot and Wainscoat emerged, likely due to regional dialects and spelling variations common in earlier centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wainscott
Among Census respondents with the surname Wainscott, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Wainscott 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 Wainscott surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 2,366
- Two or more races3.3% · 85
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 78
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 15
- Black or African American0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wainscott
Wainscott 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
#12,130
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,569
+33 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Down 734 places
2020
#11,678
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,569
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Up 452 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,396 | 2,536 | 0.94 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,130 | 2,569 | 0.87 | +33 bearers (+1.3%) | Down 734 places |
| 2020 | #11,678 | 2,569 | 0.86 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 452 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 Wainscott 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 | #12,130 | #11,678 | 3.7% |
| Count | 2,569 | 2,569 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.87 | 0.86 | -1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wainscott bearers went from 2,569 to 2,569 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 452 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,130 to #11,678.
FAQ
Wainscott surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wainscott?
Name Census estimates that about 2,946 living Americans carry the surname Wainscott. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 116,346 residents.
How common is Wainscott?
Wainscott ranks #11,678 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.86 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 2,569 people with the surname Wainscott. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,946), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.86 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 Wainscott.
Has Wainscott become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wainscott went from 2,569 recorded bearers to 2,569. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,130 to #11,678.
What does the Census say about the background of Wainscott?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wainscott, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) 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 Wainscott in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (2,366 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wainscott appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Two or More Races (3.3%), 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 Wainscott (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 Wainscott mean?
An English locational surname derived from a place in Kent, likely referring to a shelter or cottage made of wainscoting. 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 Wainscott (0.86 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 Wainscott?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.