2000
#3,155
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,460
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.88
Uncommon Last name
Worrell
Derived from a place name meaning "enclosure by a spring" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,756 Americans carry the last name Worrell. That puts it at #3,408 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.43 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 29,156 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Worrell 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 Worrell with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
12K
1 in 29,156
Census rank
#3,408
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
10K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,252 bearers of the surname Worrell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.43 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3408th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Worrell, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.4%. The next largest groups are Black (21.8%) and Hispanic (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Worrell
The surname Worrell is believed to have originated in England, with roots dating back to the 12th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "wor" meaning a marsh or swamp, and "hyll" meaning a hill, potentially indicating that the name's bearers hailed from a hilly area near a wetland.
Early recordings of the name can be found in various historical records, including the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire in 1221, which mention a Richard de Worehull. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 also reference a John de Worrall in Cheshire.
In the 16th century, the surname appeared in various forms, such as Worrall, Worrall, Worell, and Worrell, reflecting the flexibility of spelling during that period. One notable bearer of the name was John Worrall (c. 1525-1590), a English Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake for his religious beliefs during the Marian Persecutions.
The Worrell surname has also been connected to several place names, including Worrell in Staffordshire, Worall in Cheshire, and Worall Hill in Shropshire. These locations likely served as the ancestral homes of various branches of the Worrell family.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name continued to be prominent in various parts of England. Notable individuals bearing the surname include Sir John Worrell (1628-1695), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Callington, and John Worrell (1659-1722), an English merchant and landowner in Barbados.
In the 19th century, the Worrell name gained further recognition with individuals like Benjamin Prentiss Worrell (1838-1912), an American lawyer and politician who served as the 12th Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, and Frank Vernon Worrell (1876-1957), an English cricketer who played for Surrey County Cricket Club and captained the English national team.
Other noteworthy Worrells throughout history include Sir Henry Worrell (1884-1956), a British naval officer who served in both World Wars, and Deborah Worrell (1941-2009), an American artist and educator known for her contributions to the field of textile arts.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Worrell
Among Census respondents with the surname Worrell, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.4%. The next largest groups are Black (21.8%) and Hispanic (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Worrell 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 Worrell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White68.4% · 7,015
- Black or African American21.8% · 2,237
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 446
- Two or more races3.9% · 398
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 119
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 37
Timeline
Historical Census data for Worrell
Worrell 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
#3,313
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,821
+361 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 3.67
Rank movement Down 158 places
2020
#3,408
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,252
-569 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 3.43
Rank movement Down 95 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,155 | 10,460 | 3.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,313 | 10,821 | 3.67 | +361 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 158 places |
| 2020 | #3,408 | 10,252 | 3.43 | -569 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 95 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 Worrell 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 | #3,313 | #3,408 | -2.9% |
| Count | 10,821 | 10,252 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 3.67 | 3.43 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Worrell bearers went from 10,821 to 10,252 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 95 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,313 to #3,408.
FAQ
Worrell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Worrell?
Name Census estimates that about 11,756 living Americans carry the surname Worrell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 29,156 residents.
How common is Worrell?
Worrell ranks #3,408 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.43 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 10,252 people with the surname Worrell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,756), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.43 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.43 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Worrell.
Has Worrell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Worrell went from 10,821 recorded bearers to 10,252. That is a decrease of 569 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,313 to #3,408.
What does the Census say about the background of Worrell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Worrell, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.4%. The next largest groups are Black (21.8%) and Hispanic (4.4%). 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 Worrell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 68.4% (7,015 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Worrell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (68.4%), Black (21.8%), Hispanic (4.4%). 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 Worrell (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 Worrell mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "enclosure by a spring" in Old English. 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 Worrell (3.43 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 Worrell?
Find out how common the surname Worrell is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.