2000
#2,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,014
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.45
Uncommon Last name
Aiken
Derived from the Irish surname Aodhagáin, meaning "descendant of Aodhagán," a Gaelic personal name meaning "little fire."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 13,555 Americans carry the last name Aiken. That puts it at #2,976 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.95 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 25,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Aiken 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 Aiken with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
14K
1 in 25,286
Census rank
#2,976
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
12K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 11,821 bearers of the surname Aiken in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.95 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2976th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Aiken, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.3%. The next largest groups are Black (27.7%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Aiken
The surname Aiken originated in Scotland and is derived from the Gaelic words 'ac' meaning 'oak' and 'innis' meaning 'island' or 'meadow'. The name initially referred to a person who lived near an oak tree or in a meadow surrounded by oak trees.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Aiken can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, which date back to the 13th century. These rolls mention a person named John Aykin, who was a resident of the village of Aiken in Dumfriesshire, Scotland.
Another early reference to the name Aiken comes from the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a series of documents recording the names of Scottish nobles and landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. The Ragman Rolls include the name of a person named William Ayken.
In the 16th century, the name Aiken was also found in various Scottish records, such as the Register of the Privy Seal of Scotland, which mentions a person named Andrew Aiken in 1545.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname Aiken was John Aiken (1652-1722), a Scottish philosopher and theologian who was a professor at the University of St. Andrews.
Another prominent figure with the name Aiken was William Aiken (1779-1831), an American politician and businessman who served as the 61st Governor of South Carolina from 1844 to 1846.
William Aiken's son, also named William Aiken (1806-1887), was a prominent Confederate politician and diplomat during the American Civil War.
In the field of literature, the name Aiken is associated with Conrad Aiken (1889-1973), an American novelist and poet who was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1930 for his work "Selected Poems".
Another notable individual with the surname Aiken was Joan Aiken (1924-2004), an English writer best known for her children's books, including the "Wolves of Willoughby Chase" series.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Aiken
Among Census respondents with the surname Aiken, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.3%. The next largest groups are Black (27.7%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Aiken 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 Aiken surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.3% · 7,487
- Black or African American27.7% · 3,275
- Two or more races4.2% · 492
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 336
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 122
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 109
Timeline
Historical Census data for Aiken
Aiken 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
#2,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,812
+798 bearers (+6.6%)
Per 100,000 4.34
Rank movement Down 61 places
2020
#2,976
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,821
-991 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 3.95
Rank movement Down 160 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,755 | 12,014 | 4.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,816 | 12,812 | 4.34 | +798 bearers (+6.6%) | Down 61 places |
| 2020 | #2,976 | 11,821 | 3.95 | -991 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 160 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 Aiken 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 | #2,816 | #2,976 | -5.7% |
| Count | 12,812 | 11,821 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 4.34 | 3.95 | -8.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Aiken bearers went from 12,812 to 11,821 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 160 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,816 to #2,976.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Aiken
FAQ
Aiken surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Aiken?
Name Census estimates that about 13,555 living Americans carry the surname Aiken. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 25,286 residents.
How common is Aiken?
Aiken ranks #2,976 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.95 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 11,821 people with the surname Aiken. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (13,555), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.95 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.95 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Aiken.
Has Aiken become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Aiken went from 12,812 recorded bearers to 11,821. That is a decrease of 991 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,816 to #2,976.
What does the Census say about the background of Aiken?
Among Census respondents with the surname Aiken, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.3%. The next largest groups are Black (27.7%) 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 Aiken in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.3% (7,487 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Aiken appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (63.3%), Black (27.7%), 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 Aiken (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 Aiken mean?
Derived from the Irish surname Aodhagáin, meaning "descendant of Aodhagán," a Gaelic personal name meaning "little fire." 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 Aiken (3.95 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 Aiken?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.