2000
#6,378
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,913
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.82
Rare Last name
Weatherspoon
An occupational surname referring to a person who made spoons or sold goods in all types of weather.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,137 Americans carry the last name Weatherspoon. That puts it at #6,137 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.79 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 55,850 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Weatherspoon 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 Weatherspoon with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.1K
1 in 55,850
Census rank
#6,137
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,352 bearers of the surname Weatherspoon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.79 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6137th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Weatherspoon, the largest self-reported group is Black at 75.7%. The next largest groups are White (14.2%) and Two or More Races (6.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Weatherspoon
The surname Weatherspoon has its origins in England, arising during the medieval period between the 11th and 15th centuries. It is derived from the Old English words "wæder" meaning weather and "spoon" referring to a maker or shaper of objects, likely describing an early tradesman who made weather vanes or similar items.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Weatherspoon name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, where a William Wetherdespon is mentioned as a taxpayer. The name also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire from 1327, with a John Wethersponne listed as a resident of the county.
During the 13th century, the Weatherspoon surname was particularly concentrated in the northern counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire, though it later spread to other parts of England. Variations in spelling were common, with forms such as Wetherdspon, Wetherspoon, and Wetherspoone appearing in historical records.
One notable individual bearing the Weatherspoon name was Sir John Weatherspoon (c. 1486-1549), who served as Lord Mayor of York in 1528 and played a role in the city's defense during the Pilgrimage of Grace rebellion. Another early figure was Thomas Weatherspoon (c. 1510-1585), a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of Bristol.
In the 17th century, the Weatherspoon surname can be found in the parish records of several English villages, such as Wetherspoon families residing in Clapham, Yorkshire, and Weatherspoon families in Warwickshire. One notable member of the family during this period was Robert Weatherspoon (1633-1711), a successful landowner and magistrate in the county of Northamptonshire.
As the British Empire expanded, the Weatherspoon name spread to other parts of the world, with members of the family recorded in colonial America and later in Canada, Australia, and other former British territories. One notable individual was James Weatherspoon (1789-1858), a Scottish-born merchant and industrialist who established successful businesses in both Canada and the United States.
While the Weatherspoon surname has evolved and dispersed over the centuries, its origins can be traced back to the skilled craftsmen and tradesmen of medieval England, whose work with weather-related items led to the distinctive surname still in use today.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Weatherspoon
Among Census respondents with the surname Weatherspoon, the largest self-reported group is Black at 75.7%. The next largest groups are White (14.2%) and Two or More Races (6.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Weatherspoon 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 Weatherspoon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American75.7% · 4,052
- White14.2% · 761
- Two or more races6.9% · 368
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 145
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 15
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Weatherspoon
Weatherspoon 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
#6,310
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,409
+496 bearers (+10.1%)
Per 100,000 1.83
Rank movement Up 68 places
2020
#6,137
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,352
-57 bearers (-1.1%)
Per 100,000 1.79
Rank movement Up 173 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,378 | 4,913 | 1.82 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,310 | 5,409 | 1.83 | +496 bearers (+10.1%) | Up 68 places |
| 2020 | #6,137 | 5,352 | 1.79 | -57 bearers (-1.1%) | Up 173 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 Weatherspoon 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 | #6,310 | #6,137 | 2.7% |
| Count | 5,409 | 5,352 | -1.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.83 | 1.79 | -2.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Weatherspoon bearers went from 5,409 to 5,352 (-1.1% change). The surname moved up 173 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,310 to #6,137.
FAQ
Weatherspoon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Weatherspoon?
Name Census estimates that about 6,137 living Americans carry the surname Weatherspoon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 55,850 residents.
How common is Weatherspoon?
Weatherspoon ranks #6,137 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.79 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 5,352 people with the surname Weatherspoon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,137), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.79 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.79 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 Weatherspoon.
Has Weatherspoon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Weatherspoon went from 5,409 recorded bearers to 5,352. That is a decrease of 57 (-1.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,310 to #6,137.
What does the Census say about the background of Weatherspoon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Weatherspoon, the largest self-reported group is Black at 75.7%. The next largest groups are White (14.2%) and Two or More Races (6.9%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Weatherspoon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.7% (4,052 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Weatherspoon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (75.7%), White (14.2%), Two or More Races (6.9%). 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 Weatherspoon (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 Weatherspoon mean?
An occupational surname referring to a person who made spoons or sold goods in all types of weather. 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 Weatherspoon (1.79 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 are called Weatherspoon?
See how many Americans have the surname Weatherspoon on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.