2000
#1,097
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 29,217
First available Census row
Per 100,000 10.83
Uncommon Last name
Welsh
A surname indicating a person of Welsh origin or ancestry.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 33,201 Americans carry the last name Welsh. That puts it at #1,190 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 9.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 10,324 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Welsh 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 Welsh with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
33K
1 in 10,324
Census rank
#1,190
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
9.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
29K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 28,953 bearers of the surname Welsh in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 9.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1190th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Welsh, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Black (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Welsh
The surname Welsh is a locational name derived from the Anglo-Saxon word "Wilisc" meaning "foreigner" or "Celt". It originally referred to settlers of Celtic or British origin living among the Anglo-Saxons in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The name is rooted in the Old English words "Walh" and "Wealh", which were used to describe the native Britons who spoke a Celtic language.
The earliest known record of the surname Welsh dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Waleis" and "Walensis". In the 12th century, the surname is found in various forms such as "le Waleys", "le Waleys", and "Walensis". These variations indicate the name's evolution from its Anglo-Saxon origins to its more modern form.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Welsh was Walter le Waleys, a landholder mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1194. Another notable figure was Sir Robert Welsh, a prominent Welsh soldier and knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War and was granted lands in Worcestershire in the 14th century.
In the 16th century, the surname Welsh was associated with several prominent figures, including John Welsh (c. 1568-1622), a Scottish Presbyterian minister and religious reformer. He was a prominent supporter of the Presbyterian cause and was exiled from Scotland for his involvement in the Gowrie Conspiracy against King James VI.
Another notable bearer of the surname was Andrew Welsh (1758-1828), an American soldier and politician who served as a Captain in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He later became a prominent figure in Pennsylvania politics, serving as a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
In the 19th century, the surname Welsh gained further recognition with the birth of the American author and humorist Edgar Welsh (1857-1945), best known for his short stories and works of satire. His works often explored themes of small-town life and human eccentricities.
Throughout its history, the surname Welsh has been closely linked to its Anglo-Saxon and Celtic origins, reflecting the cultural heritage and migrations of people within the British Isles and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Welsh
Among Census respondents with the surname Welsh, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Black (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Welsh 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 Welsh surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.9% · 25,443
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 1,091
- Black or African American3.6% · 1,035
- Two or more races3.4% · 995
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 239
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 150
Timeline
Historical Census data for Welsh
Welsh 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
#1,166
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 30,153
+936 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 10.22
Rank movement Down 69 places
2020
#1,190
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 28,953
-1,200 bearers (-4.0%)
Per 100,000 9.69
Rank movement Down 24 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,097 | 29,217 | 10.83 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,166 | 30,153 | 10.22 | +936 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 69 places |
| 2020 | #1,190 | 28,953 | 9.69 | -1,200 bearers (-4.0%) | Down 24 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 Welsh 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 | #1,166 | #1,190 | -2.1% |
| Count | 30,153 | 28,953 | -4.0% |
| Per 100K | 10.22 | 9.69 | -5.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Welsh bearers went from 30,153 to 28,953 (-4.0% change). The surname moved down 24 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,166 to #1,190.
FAQ
Welsh surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Welsh?
Name Census estimates that about 33,201 living Americans carry the surname Welsh. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 10,324 residents.
How common is Welsh?
Welsh ranks #1,190 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 9.69 per 100,000 residents, which is about 10 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 28,953 people with the surname Welsh. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (33,201), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 9.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 9.69 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 10 of them to have the surname Welsh.
Has Welsh become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Welsh went from 30,153 recorded bearers to 28,953. That is a decrease of 1,200 (-4.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,166 to #1,190.
What does the Census say about the background of Welsh?
Among Census respondents with the surname Welsh, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Black (3.6%). 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 Welsh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.9% (25,443 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Welsh appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.9%), Hispanic (3.8%), Black (3.6%). 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 Welsh (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 Welsh mean?
A surname indicating a person of Welsh origin or ancestry. 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 Welsh (9.69 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 Welsh?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Welsh at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.