2000
#10,340
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,853
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.06
Rare Last name
Woodham
From the Old English elements "wudu" meaning "wood" and "ham" meaning "homestead," referring to someone living near a wood.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,210 Americans carry the last name Woodham. That puts it at #10,874 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.94 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 106,777 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Woodham 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 Woodham with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.2K
1 in 106,777
Census rank
#10,874
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,799 bearers of the surname Woodham in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.94 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10874th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Woodham, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.6%. The next largest groups are Black (8.3%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Woodham
The surname Woodham has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to be a toponymic name, derived from various place names containing the Old English words "wudu" meaning wood and "ham" meaning homestead or village.
One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is recorded as "Wodehame" in Berkshire. This suggests that the name may have originated from a village or hamlet located in a wooded area.
In the 13th and 14th centuries, various spellings of the name emerged, including Wodham, Wodeham, and Woddham. These variations reflect the regional dialects and changes in pronunciation over time.
One notable historical figure bearing the surname Woodham was Sir William Woodham (c. 1540-1611), an English politician and landowner from Kent. He served as a Member of Parliament and was involved in local governance.
Another individual of note was Thomas Woodham (c. 1610-1677), an English Puritan minister and author who lived during the 17th century. He wrote several religious treatises and sermons that were published during his lifetime.
In the 18th century, John Woodham (1736-1812) was a prominent British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars.
A more recent historical figure was Sir Roger Woodham (1885-1967), a British diplomat and civil servant who held various positions in the Foreign Office during the early 20th century.
The surname Woodham is also associated with several place names in England, such as Woodham Walter in Essex, Woodham Mortimer in Essex, and Woodham Ferrers in Buckinghamshire. These locations may have contributed to the spread and adoption of the surname in different regions.
It is worth noting that while the surname Woodham has its roots in England, it has since been carried to other parts of the world through migration and settlement, making it a name with a diverse geographical distribution.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Woodham
Among Census respondents with the surname Woodham, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.6%. The next largest groups are Black (8.3%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Woodham 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 Woodham surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.6% · 2,368
- Black or African American8.3% · 232
- Two or more races4.2% · 117
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 49
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Woodham
Woodham 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
#10,886
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,928
+75 bearers (+2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 546 places
2020
#10,874
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,799
-129 bearers (-4.4%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Up 12 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,340 | 2,853 | 1.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,886 | 2,928 | 0.99 | +75 bearers (+2.6%) | Down 546 places |
| 2020 | #10,874 | 2,799 | 0.94 | -129 bearers (-4.4%) | Up 12 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 Woodham 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 | #10,886 | #10,874 | 0.1% |
| Count | 2,928 | 2,799 | -4.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.99 | 0.94 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Woodham bearers went from 2,928 to 2,799 (-4.4% change). The surname moved up 12 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,886 to #10,874.
FAQ
Woodham surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Woodham?
Name Census estimates that about 3,210 living Americans carry the surname Woodham. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 106,777 residents.
How common is Woodham?
Woodham ranks #10,874 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.94 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 2,799 people with the surname Woodham. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,210), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.94 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.94 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 Woodham.
Has Woodham become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Woodham went from 2,928 recorded bearers to 2,799. That is a decrease of 129 (-4.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,886 to #10,874.
What does the Census say about the background of Woodham?
Among Census respondents with the surname Woodham, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.6%. The next largest groups are Black (8.3%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Woodham in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.6% (2,368 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Woodham appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.6%), Black (8.3%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Woodham (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 Woodham mean?
From the Old English elements "wudu" meaning "wood" and "ham" meaning "homestead," referring to someone living near a wood. 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 Woodham (0.94 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 are called Woodham?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Woodham, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.