2000
#22,461
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,069
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.40
Rare Last name
Benny
A nickname surname derived from the given name Benjamin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,476 Americans carry the last name Benny. That puts it at #20,808 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.43 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 232,218 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Benny 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 Benny with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.5K
1 in 232,218
Census rank
#20,808
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,287 bearers of the surname Benny in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.43 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 20808th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Benny, the largest self-reported group is White at 46.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (36.1%) and Black (6.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Benny
The surname Benny has its origins in the Middle Ages, originating from the medieval French name "Benignus" or "Benicius", both meaning "kind" or "good-natured". This name was derived from the Latin word "benignus", which had the same meaning.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Benny can be traced back to the 12th century in the regions of Normandy and Brittany in France. It is believed that the name was initially used as a descriptive nickname, referring to an individual with a pleasant or amiable disposition.
In the 13th century, the surname Benny began to appear in various records and documents across Europe, including the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in England, which date back to 1212. This suggests that the name had spread beyond its French origins, likely due to the Norman conquest of England in 1066.
One notable early bearer of the surname was Sir John Benny, a knight who lived in the late 13th century and served under King Edward I of England. He is mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Staffordshire from 1290.
In the 14th century, the surname Benny appeared in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landholdings and population in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This indicates that the name had established itself in England by the late 11th century.
Another prominent figure with the surname Benny was William Benny, a Scottish clergyman and theologian who lived from 1570 to 1633. He served as the minister of the Tron Kirk in Edinburgh and was highly respected for his religious writings.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Benny also gained a foothold in various parts of Europe, including Germany, where it was spelled as "Benny" or "Benni", and in the Netherlands, where it was sometimes rendered as "Bennij" or "Beneij".
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname in the United States dates back to the late 17th century, when John Benny, a merchant from England, settled in Virginia in 1693.
Other notable individuals with the surname Benny throughout history include Sir John Benny (1805-1879), a British engineer and pioneer in the construction of suspension bridges, and Jack Benny (1894-1974), an American comedian, vaudeville performer, and actor who became a household name on radio and television.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Benny
Among Census respondents with the surname Benny, the largest self-reported group is White at 46.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (36.1%) and Black (6.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Benny 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 Benny surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White46.2% · 595
- Asian and Pacific Islander36.1% · 465
- Black or African American6.2% · 80
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 57
- American Indian and Alaska Native4.4% · 57
- Two or more races2.6% · 33
Timeline
Historical Census data for Benny
Benny 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
#19,602
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,376
+307 bearers (+28.7%)
Per 100,000 0.47
Rank movement Up 2,859 places
2020
#20,808
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,287
-89 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.43
Rank movement Down 1,206 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #22,461 | 1,069 | 0.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,602 | 1,376 | 0.47 | +307 bearers (+28.7%) | Up 2,859 places |
| 2020 | #20,808 | 1,287 | 0.43 | -89 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 1,206 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 Benny 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 | #19,602 | #20,808 | -6.2% |
| Count | 1,376 | 1,287 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.47 | 0.43 | -8.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Benny bearers went from 1,376 to 1,287 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 1,206 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,602 to #20,808.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Benny
FAQ
Benny surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Benny?
Name Census estimates that about 1,476 living Americans carry the surname Benny. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 232,218 residents.
How common is Benny?
Benny ranks #20,808 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.43 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,287 people with the surname Benny. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,476), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.43 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.43 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Benny.
Has Benny become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Benny went from 1,376 recorded bearers to 1,287. That is a decrease of 89 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #19,602 to #20,808.
What does the Census say about the background of Benny?
Among Census respondents with the surname Benny, the largest self-reported group is White at 46.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (36.1%) and Black (6.2%). 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 Benny in the 2020 Census, accounting for 46.2% (595 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Benny appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (46.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (36.1%), Black (6.2%). 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 Benny (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 Benny mean?
A nickname surname derived from the given name Benjamin. 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 Benny (0.43 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 many Americans have the surname Benny?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.