2000
#2,115
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,734
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.83
Uncommon Last name
Felton
Derived from a place name meaning "town in open country" or "farmstead on the open land" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 17,381 Americans carry the last name Felton. That puts it at #2,342 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 19,720 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Felton 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 Felton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
17K
1 in 19,720
Census rank
#2,342
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,157 bearers of the surname Felton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2342nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Felton, the largest self-reported group is White at 47.4%. The next largest groups are Black (43.5%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Felton
The surname Felton has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to be a locational name, derived from the place name Felton, which is found in several counties across England, including Northumberland, Shropshire, and Somerset.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Felton surname can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landowners and properties in England compiled in 1086 under the orders of William the Conqueror. The name appears as "Feltun" and "Feletun," referring to individuals or families residing in the respective Felton villages.
The etymology of the name Felton can be traced back to the Old English words "feld" and "tun," which together mean "farmstead or village in an open field." This suggests that the original bearers of the surname may have hailed from agricultural communities situated in clearings or open fields.
Notable individuals with the surname Felton include Sir John Felton (c. 1490-1545), an English courtier and soldier during the reign of Henry VIII, who was involved in the downfall and execution of Anne Boleyn. Another prominent figure was Thomas Felton (1567-1628), an English Puritan minister and theologian who played a role in the establishment of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in America.
In the realm of literature, Henry Felton was a character in Sir Walter Scott's novel "Woodstock," published in 1826. The novel is set during the English Civil War and explores the complex relationships and loyalties of the era.
John Felton (1595-1628) was an English soldier who gained notoriety for assassinating George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, a prominent figure in the court of King Charles I. His act of regicide sparked a political and religious controversy in 17th-century England.
Another notable individual bearing the Felton surname was John Felton (1613-1690), an English writer and pamphleteer who was a vocal critic of the Stuart monarchy and a supporter of the Parliamentarian cause during the English Civil War.
These examples illustrate the long and varied history of the Felton surname, spanning across different periods and fields, from military and political figures to religious leaders and literary characters, all contributing to the rich tapestry of this English locational name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Felton
Among Census respondents with the surname Felton, the largest self-reported group is White at 47.4%. The next largest groups are Black (43.5%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Felton 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 Felton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White47.4% · 7,188
- Black or African American43.5% · 6,600
- Two or more races4.8% · 729
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 511
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 83
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 46
Timeline
Historical Census data for Felton
Felton 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
#2,266
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,044
+310 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 5.44
Rank movement Down 151 places
2020
#2,342
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,157
-887 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 5.07
Rank movement Down 76 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,115 | 15,734 | 5.83 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,266 | 16,044 | 5.44 | +310 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 151 places |
| 2020 | #2,342 | 15,157 | 5.07 | -887 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 76 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 Felton 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 | #2,266 | #2,342 | -3.4% |
| Count | 16,044 | 15,157 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 5.44 | 5.07 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Felton bearers went from 16,044 to 15,157 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 76 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,266 to #2,342.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Felton
FAQ
Felton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Felton?
Name Census estimates that about 17,381 living Americans carry the surname Felton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 19,720 residents.
How common is Felton?
Felton ranks #2,342 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.07 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,157 people with the surname Felton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (17,381), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.07 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Felton.
Has Felton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Felton went from 16,044 recorded bearers to 15,157. That is a decrease of 887 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,266 to #2,342.
What does the Census say about the background of Felton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Felton, the largest self-reported group is White at 47.4%. The next largest groups are Black (43.5%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Felton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 47.4% (7,188 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Felton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (47.4%), Black (43.5%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Felton (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 Felton mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "town in open country" or "farmstead on the open land" in Old English. 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 Felton (5.07 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 Felton?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.