2000
#10,724
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,732
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.01
Rare Last name
Winsor
English occupational surname for a person who made or sold winnowing sieves, derived from the Old English "windel".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,148 Americans carry the last name Winsor. That puts it at #11,054 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,880 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Winsor 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 Winsor with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.1K
1 in 108,880
Census rank
#11,054
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,745 bearers of the surname Winsor in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11054th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Winsor, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Winsor
The surname Winsor is of English origin, originating in the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "windrā," meaning "one who comes from Windsor," a town located in the county of Berkshire. The name is closely associated with the royal town of Windsor, known for its majestic castle and its proximity to London.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where several variations such as "Windesores" and "Windresores" are mentioned. These entries suggest that the name was already well-established in the region by the late 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, the Winsor family played a prominent role in the local affairs of Windsor and its surrounding areas. Notable individuals from this period include Sir William Winsor, a knight who served under King Edward III in the 14th century, and John Winsor, a respected landowner and member of the local gentry in the 15th century.
As the centuries passed, the Winsor surname spread beyond its original geographic boundaries. One notable bearer of this name was Frederick Albert Winsor, born in 1763, a British army officer who served with distinction during the Napoleonic Wars and later became the Governor of the Bahamas.
Another prominent figure was Justin Winsor, an American writer and librarian born in 1831. He was renowned for his contributions to the field of bibliography and served as the librarian of the prestigious Boston Public Library.
In the artistic realm, the name is associated with Frederic Winsor, an American painter born in 1763, known for his landscapes and marine scenes. His works were highly celebrated during his lifetime and are now part of esteemed collections across the United States.
Throughout its history, the Winsor surname has maintained a strong connection to its origins in the town of Windsor. While its bearers have dispersed across different regions and continents, the name continues to carry the legacy of its medieval English roots and the rich heritage associated with the royal town from which it originated.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Winsor
Among Census respondents with the surname Winsor, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Winsor 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 Winsor surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 2,537
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 95
- Two or more races2.4% · 66
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 26
- Black or African American0.5% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Winsor
Winsor 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
#11,380
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,771
+39 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Down 656 places
2020
#11,054
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,745
-26 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Up 326 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,724 | 2,732 | 1.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,380 | 2,771 | 0.94 | +39 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 656 places |
| 2020 | #11,054 | 2,745 | 0.92 | -26 bearers (-0.9%) | Up 326 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 Winsor 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 | #11,380 | #11,054 | 2.9% |
| Count | 2,771 | 2,745 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.92 | -2.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Winsor bearers went from 2,771 to 2,745 (-0.9% change). The surname moved up 326 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,380 to #11,054.
FAQ
Winsor surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Winsor?
Name Census estimates that about 3,148 living Americans carry the surname Winsor. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,880 residents.
How common is Winsor?
Winsor ranks #11,054 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.92 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 2,745 people with the surname Winsor. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,148), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.92 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 Winsor.
Has Winsor become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Winsor went from 2,771 recorded bearers to 2,745. That is a decrease of 26 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,380 to #11,054.
What does the Census say about the background of Winsor?
Among Census respondents with the surname Winsor, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Winsor in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (2,537 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Winsor appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Winsor (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 Winsor mean?
English occupational surname for a person who made or sold winnowing sieves, derived from the Old English "windel". 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 Winsor (0.92 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 Winsor?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.