2000
#12,334
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,311
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.86
Rare Last name
Weddington
Derived from a place name meaning "settlement associated with Wada," an Old English personal name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,496 Americans carry the last name Weddington. That puts it at #13,379 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.73 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 137,321 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Weddington 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 Weddington with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.5K
1 in 137,321
Census rank
#13,379
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,177 bearers of the surname Weddington in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.73 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13379th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Weddington, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.4%. The next largest groups are Black (33.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Weddington
The surname WEDDINGTON has its origins in England, dating back to the late 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "wedd" meaning pledge or covenant, and "inga" meaning people or family, referring to a group or settlement of people who had pledged allegiance or made a covenant.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Surrey from 1195, where a certain Radulfus de Wedington is mentioned. This suggests that the name may have originally been associated with a place called Wedington, which could have been a hamlet or village in Surrey or a neighboring county.
The name WEDDINGTON also appears in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, which lists a William de Wedington as a landholder in the county. This further reinforces the notion that the name was likely derived from a specific location or settlement.
During the Middle Ages, the WEDDINGTON name was found predominantly in the southern and central regions of England, particularly in the counties of Surrey, Oxfordshire, and Buckinghamshire. There are records of various WEDDINGTON families holding lands and estates in these areas throughout the 13th and 14th centuries.
One notable figure from this period was Sir John WEDDINGTON, a knight who fought in the Battle of Crécy during the Hundred Years' War in 1346. He was born around 1320 and served under King Edward III.
In the 16th century, the WEDDINGTON name gained prominence with the birth of William WEDDINGTON (1505-1572), a wealthy merchant and landowner from Oxfordshire. He was known for his philanthropic efforts and contributed to the construction of several churches and charitable institutions in the region.
Another prominent individual was Sir Thomas WEDDINGTON (1587-1659), a Member of Parliament who represented Buckinghamshire in the Long Parliament during the English Civil War. He was a staunch Royalist and fought for King Charles I.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the WEDDINGTON name spread to other parts of England, as well as to the American colonies. One notable figure from this time was Robert WEDDINGTON (1637-1698), an early settler in Virginia who established a successful tobacco plantation.
In the 19th century, the WEDDINGTON family produced several notable academics and intellectuals, including Professor William WEDDINGTON (1805-1890), a renowned linguist and scholar of ancient Greek at the University of Oxford.
Throughout its history, the WEDDINGTON surname has been associated with various noble and influential families, as well as numerous individuals who have made significant contributions to various fields, including politics, academia, and commerce.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Weddington
Among Census respondents with the surname Weddington, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.4%. The next largest groups are Black (33.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Weddington 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 Weddington surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White58.4% · 1,272
- Black or African American33.1% · 720
- Two or more races4.3% · 94
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 63
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Weddington
Weddington 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
#13,121
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,336
+25 bearers (+1.1%)
Per 100,000 0.79
Rank movement Down 787 places
2020
#13,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,177
-159 bearers (-6.8%)
Per 100,000 0.73
Rank movement Down 258 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,334 | 2,311 | 0.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,121 | 2,336 | 0.79 | +25 bearers (+1.1%) | Down 787 places |
| 2020 | #13,379 | 2,177 | 0.73 | -159 bearers (-6.8%) | Down 258 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 Weddington 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 | #13,121 | #13,379 | -2.0% |
| Count | 2,336 | 2,177 | -6.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.79 | 0.73 | -7.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Weddington bearers went from 2,336 to 2,177 (-6.8% change). The surname moved down 258 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,121 to #13,379.
FAQ
Weddington surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Weddington?
Name Census estimates that about 2,496 living Americans carry the surname Weddington. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 137,321 residents.
How common is Weddington?
Weddington ranks #13,379 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.73 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 2,177 people with the surname Weddington. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,496), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.73 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.73 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 Weddington.
Has Weddington become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Weddington went from 2,336 recorded bearers to 2,177. That is a decrease of 159 (-6.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,121 to #13,379.
What does the Census say about the background of Weddington?
Among Census respondents with the surname Weddington, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.4%. The next largest groups are Black (33.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Weddington in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.4% (1,272 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Weddington appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (58.4%), Black (33.1%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Weddington (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 Weddington mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "settlement associated with Wada," an Old English personal name. 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 Weddington (0.73 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 Weddington?
Want to know how common the surname Weddington is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.