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

Wickham, 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 Wickham surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Wickham in America

Wickham is the 4814th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Wickham surname appeared 7,335 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Wickham.

We can also compare 2010 data for Wickham 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 Wickham

The surname Wickham has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English words "wic" meaning a dwelling or farm, and "ham" meaning a homestead or village. The name likely referred to a settlement or village where people lived and worked.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wickham can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landholdings and properties commissioned by William the Conqueror. The book mentions several places with the name Wickham, indicating that the surname was already in use by that time.

During the Middle Ages, the name Wickham was widely distributed across various regions of England, particularly in the southern counties of Hampshire, Berkshire, and Surrey. The spelling variations included Wicham, Wycham, and Wykham.

In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the name Wickham was William of Wykeham (c. 1324-1404), a prominent English architect and Bishop of Winchester. He was responsible for the construction of several significant buildings, including parts of Windsor Castle and the New College at Oxford University.

Another prominent individual with the surname Wickham was Henry Wickham (1786-1864), an English botanist and explorer. He is credited with introducing the first rubber tree seeds from Brazil to the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, leading to the establishment of the rubber industry in Southeast Asia.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Wickham was also associated with several notable families in England, including the Wickhams of Swallowfield in Berkshire and the Wickhams of Rotherfield in Sussex.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Wickham in the United States can be traced back to the 17th century, when several individuals bearing the name arrived as colonists in Virginia and Massachusetts.

Throughout history, other notable individuals with the surname Wickham include:

1. George Wickham (1843-1904), an English cricketer who played for Cambridge University and the Marylebone Cricket Club.
2. John Clements Wickham (1798-1839), an English naval officer and explorer who surveyed parts of the Australian coastline.
3. William Wickham (1761-1840), an English diplomat and spy who played a crucial role in the formation of the Fourth Coalition against Napoleon.
4. Thomas Wickham (1787-1844), an English architect known for his work on public buildings in London, including the Royal College of Surgeons.
5. Humphry Wickham (1905-1987), an English mathematician and statistician who made significant contributions to the field of computational statistics.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Wickham

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

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 Wickham 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 Wickham 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 Wickham was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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