2000
#11,696
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,457
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.91
Rare Last name
Whittier
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the places in England called Whitwell or Whitwill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,748 Americans carry the last name Whittier. That puts it at #12,379 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 124,729 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Whittier 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
2.7K
1 in 124,729
Census rank
#12,379
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,396 bearers of the surname Whittier in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12379th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Whittier, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Whittier
The surname Whittier is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "hwit" meaning white and "ærn" meaning house or dwelling place. It likely originated as a locational name, referring to someone who lived near a white house or a house made of whitewashed stones.
The name is first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Hwittingaraes" in Essex. This suggests that the name was already established in England by the late 11th century.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname was John Whittier, who was born in Wiltshire, England in the late 13th century. He is mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of 1273 as holding lands in the village of Whittier, which was likely named after his family.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in various spellings such as Whytter, Whittyer, and Whittere, reflecting the evolving spelling patterns of the time.
A notable figure with this surname was John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892), an American Quaker poet and abolitionist. He was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts, and is renowned for his influential works such as "Snow-Bound" and "Barbara Frietchie."
Another individual of historical significance was Sir John Whittier (1536-1610), an English lawyer and judge who served as Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench from 1606 to 1610.
In the 17th century, the name was found in various locations across England, including Yorkshire, where a family surnamed Whittier owned lands in the village of Whittiers, now known as Whittiers-Grassington.
In the late 18th century, Nathaniel Whittier (1759-1835), an American farmer and soldier, fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in New Hampshire.
The surname Whittier also has ties to several place names in England, such as Whittiers Close in Hertfordshire and Whittier's Green in Suffolk, further reinforcing its locational origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Whittier
Among Census respondents with the surname Whittier, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Whittier 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 Whittier surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.4% · 1,950
- Black or African American9.5% · 227
- Two or more races4.0% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 76
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 25
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Whittier
Whittier 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
#12,047
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,589
+132 bearers (+5.4%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 351 places
2020
#12,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,396
-193 bearers (-7.5%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Down 332 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,696 | 2,457 | 0.91 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,047 | 2,589 | 0.88 | +132 bearers (+5.4%) | Down 351 places |
| 2020 | #12,379 | 2,396 | 0.80 | -193 bearers (-7.5%) | Down 332 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 Whittier 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 | #12,047 | #12,379 | -2.8% |
| Count | 2,589 | 2,396 | -7.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.88 | 0.80 | -8.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Whittier bearers went from 2,589 to 2,396 (-7.5% change). The surname moved down 332 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,047 to #12,379.
FAQ
Whittier surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Whittier?
Name Census estimates that about 2,748 living Americans carry the surname Whittier. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 124,729 residents.
How common is Whittier?
Whittier ranks #12,379 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.80 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 2,396 people with the surname Whittier. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,748), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.80 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 Whittier.
Has Whittier become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Whittier went from 2,589 recorded bearers to 2,396. That is a decrease of 193 (-7.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,047 to #12,379.
What does the Census say about the background of Whittier?
Among Census respondents with the surname Whittier, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.5%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Whittier in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.4% (1,950 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Whittier appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.4%), Black (9.5%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Whittier (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 Whittier mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the places in England called Whitwell or Whitwill. 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 Whittier (0.80 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 Whittier?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.