2000
#5,674
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,611
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.08
Rare Last name
Whetstone
An occupational surname referring to a person who made, sold, or used whetstones for sharpening tools.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,664 Americans carry the last name Whetstone. That puts it at #5,741 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.94 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,434 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Whetstone 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 Whetstone with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.7K
1 in 51,434
Census rank
#5,741
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,811 bearers of the surname Whetstone in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.94 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5741st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Whetstone, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.6%. The next largest groups are Black (24.2%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Whetstone
The surname Whetstone is of English origin and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is an occupational surname derived from the Old English words "hwettan" meaning to sharpen and "stan" meaning stone, referring to someone who sharpened tools or weapons on a whetstone.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Whetstone dates back to the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273, where a Robert le Whetteston is mentioned. The surname was also found in various other medieval records such as the Pipe Rolls of Bedfordshire in 1275, where a William Whetstone is listed.
The Whetstone surname is believed to have originated in various parts of England, particularly in areas where the occupational trade of sharpening tools or weapons was prevalent. This includes regions like Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, and Gloucestershire.
In the 14th century, the surname appeared in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, where a John Whetteston was recorded. The name also featured in the Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1380, with a mention of a Thomas Whetstone.
One notable historical figure with the Whetstone surname was George Whetstone (c. 1550 - c. 1587), an English author and playwright who wrote works such as "The Rocke of Regard" and "The Honorable Reputation of a Souldier". He is considered one of the earliest literary critics in English literature.
Another prominent individual was Sir William Whetstone (1508 - 1594), an English politician and Member of Parliament who served during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He was a prominent landowner in Gloucestershire and held various offices throughout his lifetime.
In the 17th century, the surname Whetstone was found in various parish records, such as the baptism of John Whetstone in 1635 in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, and the marriage of Thomas Whetstone and Elizabeth Brinsley in 1674 in Olney, Buckinghamshire.
The Whetstone surname also had variants and spellings like Wetstone, Whetston, and Whettestone, which were used interchangeably in historical records.
Overall, the surname Whetstone has a rich history dating back to medieval England, with its origins rooted in the occupation of sharpening tools and weapons on whetstones. It has been carried by notable individuals throughout history and has maintained its presence across various regions of England over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Whetstone
Among Census respondents with the surname Whetstone, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.6%. The next largest groups are Black (24.2%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Whetstone 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 Whetstone surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.6% · 3,928
- Black or African American24.2% · 1,408
- Two or more races4.4% · 253
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 176
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 40
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Whetstone
Whetstone 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
#5,721
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,064
+453 bearers (+8.1%)
Per 100,000 2.06
Rank movement Down 47 places
2020
#5,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,811
-253 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.94
Rank movement Down 20 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,674 | 5,611 | 2.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,721 | 6,064 | 2.06 | +453 bearers (+8.1%) | Down 47 places |
| 2020 | #5,741 | 5,811 | 1.94 | -253 bearers (-4.2%) | Down 20 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 Whetstone 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 | #5,721 | #5,741 | -0.3% |
| Count | 6,064 | 5,811 | -4.2% |
| Per 100K | 2.06 | 1.94 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Whetstone bearers went from 6,064 to 5,811 (-4.2% change). The surname moved down 20 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,721 to #5,741.
FAQ
Whetstone surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Whetstone?
Name Census estimates that about 6,664 living Americans carry the surname Whetstone. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,434 residents.
How common is Whetstone?
Whetstone ranks #5,741 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.94 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 5,811 people with the surname Whetstone. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,664), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.94 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.94 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 Whetstone.
Has Whetstone become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Whetstone went from 6,064 recorded bearers to 5,811. That is a decrease of 253 (-4.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,721 to #5,741.
What does the Census say about the background of Whetstone?
Among Census respondents with the surname Whetstone, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.6%. The next largest groups are Black (24.2%) 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 Whetstone in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.6% (3,928 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Whetstone appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.6%), Black (24.2%), 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 Whetstone (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 Whetstone mean?
An occupational surname referring to a person who made, sold, or used whetstones for sharpening tools. 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 Whetstone (1.94 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 Whetstone?
See how many people have the surname Whetstone on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.