2000
#4,579
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.63
Rare Last name
Wickham
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the various places named Wickham in England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,175 Americans carry the last name Wickham. That puts it at #4,807 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.39 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 41,927 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wickham 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 Wickham with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.2K
1 in 41,927
Census rank
#4,807
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,129 bearers of the surname Wickham in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.39 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4807th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wickham, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.9%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wickham
Among Census respondents with the surname Wickham, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.9%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Wickham 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 Wickham surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.9% · 6,121
- Black or African American5.4% · 382
- Two or more races3.8% · 272
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 237
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 65
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 52
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wickham
Wickham 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
#4,814
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,335
+231 bearers (+3.3%)
Per 100,000 2.49
Rank movement Down 235 places
2020
#4,807
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,129
-206 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 2.39
Rank movement Up 7 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,579 | 7,104 | 2.63 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,814 | 7,335 | 2.49 | +231 bearers (+3.3%) | Down 235 places |
| 2020 | #4,807 | 7,129 | 2.39 | -206 bearers (-2.8%) | Up 7 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 Wickham 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 | #4,814 | #4,807 | 0.1% |
| Count | 7,335 | 7,129 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 2.49 | 2.39 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wickham bearers went from 7,335 to 7,129 (-2.8% change). The surname moved up 7 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,814 to #4,807.
FAQ
Wickham surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wickham?
Name Census estimates that about 8,175 living Americans carry the surname Wickham. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 41,927 residents.
How common is Wickham?
Wickham ranks #4,807 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.39 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 7,129 people with the surname Wickham. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,175), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.39 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.39 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 Wickham.
Has Wickham become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wickham went from 7,335 recorded bearers to 7,129. That is a decrease of 206 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #4,814 to #4,807.
What does the Census say about the background of Wickham?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wickham, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.9%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Wickham in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.9% (6,121 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wickham appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.9%), Black (5.4%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Wickham (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 Wickham mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the various places named Wickham in England. 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 Wickham (2.39 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 surname Wickham?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.