2000
#7,533
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,072
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.51
Rare Last name
Chancellor
An occupational surname referring to a legal official or secretary in the service of a monarch or nobleman.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,494 Americans carry the last name Chancellor. That puts it at #8,096 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 76,269 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Chancellor 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 Chancellor with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.5K
1 in 76,269
Census rank
#8,096
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,919 bearers of the surname Chancellor in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8096th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Chancellor, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.3%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Chancellor
The surname Chancellor is of English origin, derived from the Old French word "chancelier," which in turn comes from the Latin "cancellarius." The name first appeared in England during the Norman Conquest in the 11th century.
The name Chancellor originally referred to a person who served as a high-ranking official or secretary in a royal court or government. These individuals were responsible for overseeing important administrative and legal matters, as well as serving as advisors to the monarch or ruler.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name is listed as "Canceller" and "Cancellarius" in various entries.
In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Chancellor was Ralph de Cancellis, who served as the Chancellor of England under King Henry III from 1233 to 1238. Another prominent individual was Richard le Chanceler, a wealthy merchant and landowner who lived in London during the late 13th century.
During the 14th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as Chanceller, Chancelour, and Chaunceler. One example is John de Chanceller, a clergyman who served as the Bishop of Salisbury from 1329 to 1341.
In the 16th century, Sir Thomas Chancellor (c. 1495-1549) was an English navigator and explorer who led an expedition to Russia in 1553, establishing trade relations between England and Russia. He is often credited with being the first Englishman to reach the White Sea and travel into the interior of Russia.
Another notable figure with the surname Chancellor was Richard Chancellor (c. 1520-1556), an English navigator and explorer who accompanied Sir Hugh Willoughby on an expedition to reach China via the Arctic Ocean in 1553. After becoming separated from Willoughby's ships, Chancellor reached the White Sea and made contact with the Russians, paving the way for future trade relations.
In the 17th century, Edward Chancellor (c. 1610-1675) was an English politician and lawyer who served as the Speaker of the House of Commons from 1660 to 1667 during the reign of King Charles II.
These examples illustrate the rich history and significance of the surname Chancellor, which has been borne by prominent individuals across various fields, including government, law, religion, and exploration.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chancellor
Among Census respondents with the surname Chancellor, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.3%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Chancellor 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 Chancellor surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.0% · 2,899
- Black or African American15.3% · 599
- Two or more races4.7% · 185
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 129
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.0% · 79
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 28
Timeline
Historical Census data for Chancellor
Chancellor 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
#7,974
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,147
+75 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 1.41
Rank movement Down 441 places
2020
#8,096
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,919
-228 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Down 122 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,533 | 4,072 | 1.51 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,974 | 4,147 | 1.41 | +75 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 441 places |
| 2020 | #8,096 | 3,919 | 1.31 | -228 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 122 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 Chancellor 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 | #7,974 | #8,096 | -1.5% |
| Count | 4,147 | 3,919 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.41 | 1.31 | -7.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Chancellor bearers went from 4,147 to 3,919 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 122 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,974 to #8,096.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Chancellor
FAQ
Chancellor surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Chancellor?
Name Census estimates that about 4,494 living Americans carry the surname Chancellor. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 76,269 residents.
How common is Chancellor?
Chancellor ranks #8,096 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.31 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 3,919 people with the surname Chancellor. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,494), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.31 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 Chancellor.
Has Chancellor become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Chancellor went from 4,147 recorded bearers to 3,919. That is a decrease of 228 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,974 to #8,096.
What does the Census say about the background of Chancellor?
Among Census respondents with the surname Chancellor, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.0%. The next largest groups are Black (15.3%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Chancellor in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.0% (2,899 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Chancellor appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (74.0%), Black (15.3%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Chancellor (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 Chancellor mean?
An occupational surname referring to a legal official or secretary in the service of a monarch or nobleman. 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 Chancellor (1.31 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 Chancellor?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Chancellor, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.