Find out how popular the last name Whitten is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Whitten.

Whitten, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Whitten surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Whitten in America

Whitten is the 2571st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Whitten surname appeared 14,054 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Whitten.

We can also compare 2010 data for Whitten to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Whitten

The surname Whitten is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "hwit" meaning "white." It arose as a descriptive name for someone with pale or fair complexion or hair color. The name emerged in the early medieval period, around the 12th century.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Whitten can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1176, where it appears as "Whitene." This suggests that the surname was already in use by the late 12th century in parts of England.

In the 13th century, the name is documented in various forms, such as "Whiten" and "Witen," reflecting regional variations in spelling and pronunciation. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 mention a "William le Whiten" in Oxfordshire.

During the 14th century, the surname began to take on its more modern spelling of "Whitten." The Poll Tax Returns of 1379 list a "John Whitten" in Yorkshire, indicating the name's presence in northern England at that time.

Notable historical figures bearing the Whitten surname include Sir John Whitten (1555-1629), an English politician who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1612. In the 17th century, there was also a prominent Puritan minister named John Whitten (1620-1692) who emigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Other notable individuals with the Whitten surname include:

1. Sir Thomas Whitten (1676-1748), an English naval officer and colonial governor of Nova Scotia.
2. Joseph Whitten (1765-1841), an American soldier and politician who served in the War of 1812.
3. Robert Whitten (1819-1887), an American lawyer and politician from Virginia who served in the Confederate Congress during the Civil War.
4. Alice Whitten (1865-1946), an American educator and suffragist who advocated for women's rights and education reform.
5. John Henry Whitten (1906-1992), an American artist known for his vibrant abstract expressionist paintings.

While the Whitten surname is predominantly found in the United States and United Kingdom, it has also been documented in other English-speaking countries like Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, reflecting the historical migration patterns of English settlers.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Whitten

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Whitten.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Whitten was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Whitten has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Whitten was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Whitten, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!