2000
#12,929
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,179
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.81
Rare Last name
Yardley
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the places named Yardley in England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,594 Americans carry the last name Yardley. That puts it at #12,983 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 132,134 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Yardley 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 Yardley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 132,134
Census rank
#12,983
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,262 bearers of the surname Yardley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12983rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Yardley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Yardley
The surname Yardley is of English origin, deriving from the place name Yardley, which can be found in various locations across England. The name is believed to have originated from the Old English words "gerd" meaning "yard" and "leah" meaning "meadow" or "clearing". This suggests that the name was initially used to refer to someone who lived near or owned a meadow or clearing used for a yard or pasture.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Yardley can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Ierdele" in reference to places in Worcestershire and Staffordshire. This early spelling variation highlights the evolution of the name over time.
In the 13th century, records show the name spelled as "Yerdeley" and "Yardeley", indicating the gradual shift towards the modern spelling. During this period, the surname was particularly prevalent in the West Midlands region of England.
Notable individuals with the surname Yardley include Sir William Yardley (c. 1520-1589), an English merchant and diplomat who served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1572. Another prominent figure was Thomas Yardley (1616-1693), an English immigrant to America who became the deputy governor of the English colony of Virginia in the mid-17th century.
In the 18th century, the Yardley family established themselves as prominent landowners in Staffordshire, with their ancestral home being the Yardley Manor located near the village of Yardley. One member of this family, John Yardley (1718-1784), was a notable English architect who designed several churches and country houses in the region.
The 19th century saw the emergence of William Yardley (1808-1884), an English industrialist who founded the Yardley Soap Company in Birmingham. This company went on to become a successful manufacturer of luxury toiletries and perfumes, continuing to operate under the Yardley name for over a century.
While the surname Yardley has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world due to emigration and migration patterns. However, its origins can be traced back to the Old English words that described the physical characteristics of the places where the earliest bearers of the name lived.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Yardley
Among Census respondents with the surname Yardley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Yardley 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 Yardley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 2,028
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 87
- Two or more races3.7% · 84
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.4% · 31
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 20
- Black or African American0.5% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Yardley
Yardley 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
#13,065
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,350
+171 bearers (+7.8%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Down 136 places
2020
#12,983
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,262
-88 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Up 82 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,929 | 2,179 | 0.81 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,065 | 2,350 | 0.80 | +171 bearers (+7.8%) | Down 136 places |
| 2020 | #12,983 | 2,262 | 0.76 | -88 bearers (-3.7%) | Up 82 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 Yardley 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 | #13,065 | #12,983 | 0.6% |
| Count | 2,350 | 2,262 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.80 | 0.76 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Yardley bearers went from 2,350 to 2,262 (-3.7% change). The surname moved up 82 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,065 to #12,983.
FAQ
Yardley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Yardley?
Name Census estimates that about 2,594 living Americans carry the surname Yardley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 132,134 residents.
How common is Yardley?
Yardley ranks #12,983 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 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 2,262 people with the surname Yardley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,594), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 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 Yardley.
Has Yardley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Yardley went from 2,350 recorded bearers to 2,262. That is a decrease of 88 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,065 to #12,983.
What does the Census say about the background of Yardley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Yardley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Yardley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (2,028 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Yardley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Hispanic (3.8%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Yardley (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 Yardley mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the places named Yardley in England. 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 Yardley (0.76 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 share the surname Yardley?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.