2000
#12,334
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,311
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.86
Rare Last name
Westberry
An English habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "west fortified place or town."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,476 Americans carry the last name Westberry. That puts it at #13,480 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.72 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 138,431 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Westberry 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
2.5K
1 in 138,431
Census rank
#13,480
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,159 bearers of the surname Westberry in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.72 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13480th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Westberry, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.0%. The next largest groups are Black (11.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Westberry
The surname Westberry is believed to have originated in England, with the earliest known records dating back to the late 13th century. It is derived from the Old English word "westburh," which means "western fortified place" or "western town." This suggests that the name may have been initially given to someone who lived in a western town or village.
One of the earliest known references to the surname Westberry can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1275, which mentions a William de Westbury. It is likely that the name was initially spelled as "Westbury" before evolving into its modern form of "Westberry."
During the 14th and 15th centuries, the surname Westberry began to appear in various records across different counties in England. In the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, a John de Westbury is listed. Additionally, in the Chancery Proceedings of 1558, a Robert Westbery from Oxfordshire is mentioned.
The earliest recorded example of the Westberry surname with its modern spelling can be found in the Parish Registers of St. Mary's Church in Warwick, where a William Westberry was baptized in 1592. Another notable figure from this era was John Westberry, a merchant from Bristol who lived from 1608 to 1678.
In the 17th century, the Westberry surname continued to spread across England. One notable individual was Thomas Westberry, a prominent landowner from Wiltshire who lived from 1635 to 1711. Another was Richard Westberry, a clergyman from Oxfordshire who was born in 1649 and served as the vicar of St. Michael's Church in Oxford.
As the centuries progressed, the Westberry surname became more widely dispersed throughout England and beyond. In the 18th century, a notable figure was William Westberry, a scholar and author from Lancashire who was born in 1745 and wrote several books on history and philosophy.
In the 19th century, one of the most prominent individuals with the Westberry surname was Sir John Westberry, a British politician and diplomat who served as the Governor of the Bahamas from 1829 to 1835. He played a significant role in the abolition of slavery in the British West Indies.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Westberry
Among Census respondents with the surname Westberry, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.0%. The next largest groups are Black (11.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Westberry 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 Westberry surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.0% · 1,727
- Black or African American11.9% · 257
- Two or more races4.4% · 94
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 62
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Westberry
Westberry 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
#13,138
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,330
+19 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.79
Rank movement Down 804 places
2020
#13,480
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,159
-171 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 342 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 | #13,138 | 2,330 | 0.79 | +19 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 804 places |
| 2020 | #13,480 | 2,159 | 0.72 | -171 bearers (-7.3%) | Down 342 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 Westberry 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 | #13,138 | #13,480 | -2.6% |
| Count | 2,330 | 2,159 | -7.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.79 | 0.72 | -8.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Westberry bearers went from 2,330 to 2,159 (-7.3% change). The surname moved down 342 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,138 to #13,480.
FAQ
Westberry surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Westberry?
Name Census estimates that about 2,476 living Americans carry the surname Westberry. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 138,431 residents.
How common is Westberry?
Westberry ranks #13,480 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.72 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 2,159 people with the surname Westberry. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,476), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.72 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.72 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 Westberry.
Has Westberry become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Westberry went from 2,330 recorded bearers to 2,159. That is a decrease of 171 (-7.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,138 to #13,480.
What does the Census say about the background of Westberry?
Among Census respondents with the surname Westberry, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.0%. The next largest groups are Black (11.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Westberry in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.0% (1,727 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Westberry appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.0%), Black (11.9%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Westberry (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 Westberry mean?
An English habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "west fortified place or town." 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 Westberry (0.72 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 have the last name Westberry?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Westberry at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.