2000
#11,273
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,574
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.95
Rare Last name
Fordyce
From a place name derived from the Old English words "ford" meaning ford and "dic" meaning ditch.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,063 Americans carry the last name Fordyce. That puts it at #11,302 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 111,902 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fordyce 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 Fordyce with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.1K
1 in 111,902
Census rank
#11,302
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,671 bearers of the surname Fordyce in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11302nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fordyce, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.0%. The next largest groups are Black (6.7%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fordyce
The surname Fordyce originated in Scotland in the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "ford" and "wick," meaning a settlement or dwelling near a ford or shallow river crossing. The name was initially found in the county of Banffshire, located in the northeastern part of Scotland.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Fordyce surname can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from 1264, where a "Walter de Fordyce" is listed as a landholder in Banffshire. The name is also found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which recorded the names of Scottish landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England.
In the 15th century, the Fordyce family held lands in the parish of Fordyce in Banffshire. The parish took its name from the nearby village of Fordyce, which was once an important market town. The earliest recorded spelling of the place name was "Fordice," as seen in the Registrum Episcopatus Aberdonensis from 1440.
One notable historical figure bearing the Fordyce surname was George Fordyce (1736-1802), a Scottish physician and lecturer on medicine. He was born in Aberdeen and became a prominent figure in medical education in London, where he taught at the Royal College of Physicians.
Another notable Fordyce was James Fordyce (1720-1796), a Scottish Presbyterian minister and author. He was born in Northamptonshire, England, and served as a pastor in various churches before becoming a popular preacher and lecturer in London.
Sir William Fordyce (1724-1792) was a Scottish physician and chemist who made significant contributions to the study of chemistry and mineralogy. He was born in Edinburgh and served as a professor of chemistry at the University of Edinburgh.
John Fordyce (1642-1679) was a Scottish minister and theologian who was persecuted for his religious beliefs during the Killing Times in Scotland. He was born in Aberdeenshire and became a prominent figure in the Covenanter movement.
In the 19th century, Alexander Dingwall Fordyce Saltoun (1805-1885) was a Scottish landowner and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Banffshire from 1835 to 1857. He was born in Banffshire and inherited the Fordyce estates through his mother's family.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fordyce
Among Census respondents with the surname Fordyce, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.0%. The next largest groups are Black (6.7%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Fordyce 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 Fordyce surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.0% · 2,325
- Black or African American6.7% · 178
- Two or more races3.0% · 80
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 73
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fordyce
Fordyce 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
#11,870
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,638
+64 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Down 597 places
2020
#11,302
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,671
+33 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Up 568 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,273 | 2,574 | 0.95 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,870 | 2,638 | 0.89 | +64 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 597 places |
| 2020 | #11,302 | 2,671 | 0.89 | +33 bearers (+1.3%) | Up 568 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 Fordyce 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 | #11,870 | #11,302 | 4.8% |
| Count | 2,638 | 2,671 | 1.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.89 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fordyce bearers went from 2,638 to 2,671 (+1.3% change). The surname moved up 568 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,870 to #11,302.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Fordyce
FAQ
Fordyce surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fordyce?
Name Census estimates that about 3,063 living Americans carry the surname Fordyce. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 111,902 residents.
How common is Fordyce?
Fordyce ranks #11,302 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.89 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 2,671 people with the surname Fordyce. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,063), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.89 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 Fordyce.
Has Fordyce become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fordyce went from 2,638 recorded bearers to 2,671. That is an increase of 33 (+1.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,870 to #11,302.
What does the Census say about the background of Fordyce?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fordyce, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.0%. The next largest groups are Black (6.7%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Fordyce in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.0% (2,325 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fordyce appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.0%), Black (6.7%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Fordyce (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 Fordyce mean?
From a place name derived from the Old English words "ford" meaning ford and "dic" meaning ditch. 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 Fordyce (0.89 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 Fordyce?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.