2000
#618
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 49,858
First available Census row
Per 100,000 18.48
Uncommon Last name
Hensley
From a place called Heansleah, derived from the Old English words "hēan" meaning "high" and "lēah" meaning "woodland clearing."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 54,601 Americans carry the last name Hensley. That puts it at #701 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 15.93 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 6,277 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hensley 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 Hensley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
55K
1 in 6,277
Census rank
#701
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
15.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
48K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 47,615 bearers of the surname Hensley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 15.93 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 701st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hensley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hensley
The surname Hensley has its origins in England, dating back to the late medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "henn" and "leah," which together mean "a clearing or meadow where hens are kept." The name likely originated as a locational surname, referring to someone who lived near or worked in such a place.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Staffordshire from 1195, which mention a Richard de Hennesleye. This suggests that the name was already established in the English Midlands by the late 12th century.
Throughout the medieval and early modern periods, various spelling variations of the name emerged, including Hennesley, Henesley, and Hennysleye. These differences were often a result of regional dialects and the inconsistencies of scribes.
In the 16th century, the name appears in records from the county of Shropshire, where a family of Hensleys held land and property in the village of Hensley. This may have been the ancestral home of many modern-day Hensleys.
Notable individuals with the Hensley surname throughout history include John Hensley (c. 1550-1618), a prominent English Puritan minister and author; Robert Hensley (1742-1811), an American pioneer and Revolutionary War soldier; and David Hensley (1773-1835), a Baptist minister and early settler in Kentucky.
Other notable Hensleys include Sir Philip Hensley (1779-1856), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars, and Robert Hensley (1822-1906), a Union Army officer during the American Civil War.
While the Hensley name has its roots in England, it has since spread around the world, particularly to North America and other regions with significant British immigration. However, its origins can be traced back to the English countryside, where it likely referred to those who lived or worked in areas where chickens were raised.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hensley
Among Census respondents with the surname Hensley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Hensley 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 Hensley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 42,689
- Two or more races4.2% · 2,006
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 1,422
- Black or African American1.8% · 842
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 371
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 285
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hensley
Hensley 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
#668
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 51,081
+1,223 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 17.32
Rank movement Down 50 places
2020
#701
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 47,615
-3,466 bearers (-6.8%)
Per 100,000 15.93
Rank movement Down 33 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #618 | 49,858 | 18.48 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #668 | 51,081 | 17.32 | +1,223 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 50 places |
| 2020 | #701 | 47,615 | 15.93 | -3,466 bearers (-6.8%) | Down 33 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 Hensley 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 | #668 | #701 | -4.9% |
| Count | 51,081 | 47,615 | -6.8% |
| Per 100K | 17.32 | 15.93 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hensley bearers went from 51,081 to 47,615 (-6.8% change). The surname moved down 33 positions in the national ranking, going from #668 to #701.
FAQ
Hensley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hensley?
Name Census estimates that about 54,601 living Americans carry the surname Hensley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 6,277 residents.
How common is Hensley?
Hensley ranks #701 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 15.93 per 100,000 residents, which is about 16 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 47,615 people with the surname Hensley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (54,601), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 15.93 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 15.93 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 16 of them to have the surname Hensley.
Has Hensley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hensley went from 51,081 recorded bearers to 47,615. That is a decrease of 3,466 (-6.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #668 to #701.
What does the Census say about the background of Hensley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hensley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (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 Hensley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (42,689 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hensley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Two or More Races (4.2%), Hispanic (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 Hensley (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 Hensley mean?
From a place called Heansleah, derived from the Old English words "hēan" meaning "high" and "lēah" meaning "woodland clearing." 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 Hensley (15.93 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 Hensley?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.