2000
#379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 76,114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 28.22
Uncommon Last name
Chandler
An occupational surname for a candle maker or seller, derived from the Old French word "chandelier."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 84,719 Americans carry the last name Chandler. That puts it at #440 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 24.72 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,046 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Chandler 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 Chandler with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
85K
1 in 4,046
Census rank
#440
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
24.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
74K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 73,879 bearers of the surname Chandler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 24.72 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 440th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Chandler, the largest self-reported group is White at 71.5%. The next largest groups are Black (19.1%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Chandler
The surname Chandler originated in England during the Anglo-Saxon period. It derives from the Old English word "candel" (candle) combined with the agent suffix "-er", meaning one who made or sold candles. The earliest recorded spelling dates back to the late 11th century, shortly after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.
The Domesday Book, a great survey of land and landholders completed in 1086, mentions several individuals with variations of the surname, such as Candeler and Candelor. This suggests the name was already established in various parts of England by the late 11th century.
In the 13th century, records show the surname Chandler appearing in various locations across England, including London, Kent, Somerset, and Yorkshire. The different spellings included Chaundeler, Chaundler, and Chandler, reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling at the time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Chaundeler, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275. Another early record is of William Chaundeler, who was listed in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1279.
Over the centuries, the Chandler surname has been associated with several notable individuals, such as Thomas Chandler (1693-1766), an English non-juror and controversial writer, and Samuel Chandler (1693-1766), an English non-conformist minister and writer. In the United States, notable Chandlers include Zachariah Chandler (1813-1879), a U.S. Senator from Michigan, and Raymond Chandler (1888-1959), the renowned American novelist and screenwriter known for his hardboiled crime fiction.
Other notable Chandlers throughout history include John Chandler (1760-1844), a British Army officer and Member of Parliament; Joseph Chandler (1776-1867), an English Unitarian minister and academic; and Seth Carlo Chandler (1846-1913), an American astronomer who discovered the Chandler wobble in the Earth's axis of rotation.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chandler
Among Census respondents with the surname Chandler, the largest self-reported group is White at 71.5%. The next largest groups are Black (19.1%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Chandler 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 Chandler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White71.5% · 52,851
- Black or African American19.1% · 14,116
- Two or more races4.4% · 3,269
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 2,555
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 587
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 501
Timeline
Historical Census data for Chandler
Chandler 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
#404
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 79,186
+3,072 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 26.84
Rank movement Down 25 places
2020
#440
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 73,879
-5,307 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 24.72
Rank movement Down 36 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #379 | 76,114 | 28.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #404 | 79,186 | 26.84 | +3,072 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 25 places |
| 2020 | #440 | 73,879 | 24.72 | -5,307 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 36 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 Chandler 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 | #404 | #440 | -8.9% |
| Count | 79,186 | 73,879 | -6.7% |
| Per 100K | 26.84 | 24.72 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Chandler bearers went from 79,186 to 73,879 (-6.7% change). The surname moved down 36 positions in the national ranking, going from #404 to #440.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Chandler
FAQ
Chandler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Chandler?
Name Census estimates that about 84,719 living Americans carry the surname Chandler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,046 residents.
How common is Chandler?
Chandler ranks #440 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 24.72 per 100,000 residents, which is about 25 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 73,879 people with the surname Chandler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (84,719), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 24.72 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 24.72 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 25 of them to have the surname Chandler.
Has Chandler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Chandler went from 79,186 recorded bearers to 73,879. That is a decrease of 5,307 (-6.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #404 to #440.
What does the Census say about the background of Chandler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Chandler, the largest self-reported group is White at 71.5%. The next largest groups are Black (19.1%) and Two or More Races (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 Chandler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.5% (52,851 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Chandler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (71.5%), Black (19.1%), Two or More Races (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 Chandler (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 Chandler mean?
An occupational surname for a candle maker or seller, derived from the Old French word "chandelier." 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 Chandler (24.72 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 Chandler?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Chandler is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.