2000
#546
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 54,987
First available Census row
Per 100,000 20.38
Uncommon Last name
Wilcox
From a place called Wilcott, derived from the Old English words "wilig" meaning willow and "cot" meaning cottage.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 61,656 Americans carry the last name Wilcox. That puts it at #613 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 17.99 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 5,559 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wilcox 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 Wilcox with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
62K
1 in 5,559
Census rank
#613
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
18.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
54K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 53,767 bearers of the surname Wilcox in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 17.99 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 613th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilcox, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.1%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wilcox
The surname Wilcox has its origins in England and dates back to the early medieval period. It is derived from the Old English words "wil," meaning willow, and "cocc," referring to a small stream or waterway. Therefore, the name literally translates to "one who dwells near a willow stream."
This surname was predominantly found in the counties of Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire, where willow trees and small streams were abundant. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions individuals with variations of the spelling, such as Wilcocus and Wilcoc.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various records, including the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which listed a Richard Wilcok in Oxfordshire. Another early reference is in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1275, where a Walter Wylecok is mentioned.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was William Wilcox, who was born in Oxfordshire around 1350. He was a landowner and is mentioned in local records from that time.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Wilcox became more widespread, and several notable individuals bore this name. One such person was Sir John Wilcox (1530-1608), an English politician and landowner from Gloucestershire. He served as a Member of Parliament and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth I.
Another prominent figure was Thomas Wilcox (1549-1608), an English Puritan minister and author. He was a vocal critic of the Church of England and wrote several influential works on religious reform.
In the 18th century, Benjamin Wilcox (1722-1792) was a prominent American Revolutionary War soldier and politician from Connecticut. He served as a captain in the Continental Army and later became a member of the Connecticut General Assembly.
In the 19th century, Walter Wilcox (1828-1903) was a notable American engineer and inventor. He developed several improvements to the steam engine and was also involved in the early development of the bicycle.
Throughout history, the surname Wilcox has been associated with various places, such as Wilcox County in Alabama, Wilcox in Pennsylvania, and Wilcox in Saskatchewan, Canada, all of which were likely named after individuals bearing this surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wilcox
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilcox, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.1%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Wilcox 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 Wilcox surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.1% · 43,606
- Black or African American10.2% · 5,464
- Two or more races3.9% · 2,073
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 1,866
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 413
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 345
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wilcox
Wilcox 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
#602
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 56,286
+1,299 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 19.08
Rank movement Down 56 places
2020
#613
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 53,767
-2,519 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 17.99
Rank movement Down 11 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #546 | 54,987 | 20.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #602 | 56,286 | 19.08 | +1,299 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 56 places |
| 2020 | #613 | 53,767 | 17.99 | -2,519 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 11 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 Wilcox 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 | #602 | #613 | -1.8% |
| Count | 56,286 | 53,767 | -4.5% |
| Per 100K | 19.08 | 17.99 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wilcox bearers went from 56,286 to 53,767 (-4.5% change). The surname moved down 11 positions in the national ranking, going from #602 to #613.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Wilcox
FAQ
Wilcox surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wilcox?
Name Census estimates that about 61,656 living Americans carry the surname Wilcox. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 5,559 residents.
How common is Wilcox?
Wilcox ranks #613 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 17.99 per 100,000 residents, which is about 18 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 53,767 people with the surname Wilcox. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (61,656), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 17.99 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 17.99 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 18 of them to have the surname Wilcox.
Has Wilcox become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wilcox went from 56,286 recorded bearers to 53,767. That is a decrease of 2,519 (-4.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #602 to #613.
What does the Census say about the background of Wilcox?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilcox, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.1%. The next largest groups are Black (10.2%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Wilcox in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.1% (43,606 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wilcox appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.1%), Black (10.2%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Wilcox (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 Wilcox mean?
From a place called Wilcott, derived from the Old English words "wilig" meaning willow and "cot" meaning cottage. 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 Wilcox (17.99 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 Wilcox?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.