2000
#1,660
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,781
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.33
Uncommon Last name
Westbrook
A locational surname referring to someone living near a brook on the west side of a settlement.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 22,592 Americans carry the last name Westbrook. That puts it at #1,781 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 15,171 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Westbrook 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 Westbrook with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
23K
1 in 15,171
Census rank
#1,781
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
20K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 19,701 bearers of the surname Westbrook in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1781st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Westbrook, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.9%. The next largest groups are Black (22.3%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Westbrook
The surname Westbrook is of English origin, derived from a place name meaning "west brook" or "western stream." It likely originated in the medieval period, as many English surnames arose from geographical features or locations.
Westbrook is a locative surname, indicating that the first bearers of this name hailed from a place called Westbrook or a location with a western brook or stream. The earliest recorded instances of this surname date back to the 13th century in various counties across England, such as Buckinghamshire, Gloucestershire, and Worcestershire.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, there are several entries for places called "Westbroc" or similar spellings, which may have contributed to the development of the Westbrook surname.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Westbrook surname was John de Westbrook, who was mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327. Another early record is that of William Westbrook, who was listed in the Feet of Fines for Buckinghamshire in 1426.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Westbrook. Sir John Westbrook (1512-1596) was an English politician and member of Parliament during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Thomas Westbrook (1670-1744) was an English-born settler in colonial America and the founder of the town of Westbrook, Maine.
John Westbrook (1765-1819) was a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars and was renowned for his bravery in battle. Mary Westbrook (1801-1887) was an English author and poet who published several works, including "The Wife's Revenge" and "Legends of a Leisure Hour."
Finally, Sir Thomas Westbrook (1847-1925) was a prominent British businessman and philanthropist who made significant contributions to various charitable organizations and educational institutions in London.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Westbrook
Among Census respondents with the surname Westbrook, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.9%. The next largest groups are Black (22.3%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Westbrook 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 Westbrook surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.9% · 13,369
- Black or African American22.3% · 4,399
- Two or more races4.8% · 952
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 670
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 181
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 130
Timeline
Historical Census data for Westbrook
Westbrook 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
#1,770
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,284
+503 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 6.88
Rank movement Down 110 places
2020
#1,781
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,701
-583 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 6.59
Rank movement Down 11 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,660 | 19,781 | 7.33 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,770 | 20,284 | 6.88 | +503 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 110 places |
| 2020 | #1,781 | 19,701 | 6.59 | -583 bearers (-2.9%) | Down 11 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 Westbrook 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 | #1,770 | #1,781 | -0.6% |
| Count | 20,284 | 19,701 | -2.9% |
| Per 100K | 6.88 | 6.59 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Westbrook bearers went from 20,284 to 19,701 (-2.9% change). The surname moved down 11 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,770 to #1,781.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Westbrook
FAQ
Westbrook surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Westbrook?
Name Census estimates that about 22,592 living Americans carry the surname Westbrook. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 15,171 residents.
How common is Westbrook?
Westbrook ranks #1,781 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 19,701 people with the surname Westbrook. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (22,592), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Westbrook.
Has Westbrook become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Westbrook went from 20,284 recorded bearers to 19,701. That is a decrease of 583 (-2.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,770 to #1,781.
What does the Census say about the background of Westbrook?
Among Census respondents with the surname Westbrook, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.9%. The next largest groups are Black (22.3%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Westbrook in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.9% (13,369 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Westbrook appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.9%), Black (22.3%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Westbrook (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 Westbrook mean?
A locational surname referring to someone living near a brook on the west side of a settlement. 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 Westbrook (6.59 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 Westbrook?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.