2000
#1,557
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,183
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.85
Uncommon Last name
Willard
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "wil," meaning desire, and "heard," meaning hardy or brave.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 23,140 Americans carry the last name Willard. That puts it at #1,733 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 14,812 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Willard 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 Willard with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
23K
1 in 14,812
Census rank
#1,733
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
20K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 20,179 bearers of the surname Willard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1733rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Willard, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Black (4.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Willard
The surname Willard originated in England during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English personal name "Wilard," which itself comes from the elements "wil" meaning "will" or "desire," and "ard" meaning "hardy" or "brave." The name was likely given to a child who was particularly determined or strong-willed.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Willard surname appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, a survey of land ownership commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name is listed as "Wilard" in the county of Essex.
During the Middle Ages, the Willard surname was primarily concentrated in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Norfolk in East Anglia. Some early variations of the spelling included Wilard, Wilarde, Wyllard, and Wyllarde.
In the 13th century, a Willard family held lands in the village of Ringwood in Hampshire. This is likely the origin of the place name "Willard's Ash," which appears in records from that time.
One notable bearer of the Willard surname was Simon Willard (c. 1605-1676), an English settler who arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634. He became a prominent citizen and landowner in the colony and served as a captain in the militia.
Another famous Willard was Samuel Willard (1640-1707), a Puritan minister and author who served as the president of Harvard College from 1701 until his death.
In the 18th century, Joseph Willard (1738-1804) was a respected clergyman and educator. He served as the president of Harvard College from 1781 to 1804.
Frances Elizabeth Willard (1839-1898) was a prominent educator and social reformer who led the Woman's Christian Temperance Union and played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement.
Daniel Willard (1861-1942) was a notable railroad executive who served as the president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad from 1910 to 1941, overseeing the company's growth and modernization.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Willard
Among Census respondents with the surname Willard, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Black (4.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Willard 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 Willard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.1% · 17,579
- Black or African American4.4% · 897
- Two or more races4.0% · 805
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 574
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 204
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 120
Timeline
Historical Census data for Willard
Willard 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
#1,690
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,352
+169 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 7.24
Rank movement Down 133 places
2020
#1,733
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,179
-1,173 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 6.75
Rank movement Down 43 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,557 | 21,183 | 7.85 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,690 | 21,352 | 7.24 | +169 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 133 places |
| 2020 | #1,733 | 20,179 | 6.75 | -1,173 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 43 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 Willard 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 | #1,690 | #1,733 | -2.5% |
| Count | 21,352 | 20,179 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 7.24 | 6.75 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Willard bearers went from 21,352 to 20,179 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 43 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,690 to #1,733.
FAQ
Willard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Willard?
Name Census estimates that about 23,140 living Americans carry the surname Willard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 14,812 residents.
How common is Willard?
Willard ranks #1,733 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.75 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 20,179 people with the surname Willard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (23,140), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.75 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Willard.
Has Willard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Willard went from 21,352 recorded bearers to 20,179. That is a decrease of 1,173 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,690 to #1,733.
What does the Census say about the background of Willard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Willard, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Black (4.4%) 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 Willard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.1% (17,579 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Willard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.1%), Black (4.4%), 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 Willard (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 Willard mean?
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "wil," meaning desire, and "heard," meaning hardy or brave. 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 Willard (6.75 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 common is the surname Willard?
Find out how many people have the surname Willard on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.