2000
#1,652
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,899
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.38
Uncommon Last name
Milton
An English habitational surname derived from any of several places named Milton, meaning "middle town" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 23,093 Americans carry the last name Milton. That puts it at #1,735 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.74 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 14,842 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Milton 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 Milton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
23K
1 in 14,842
Census rank
#1,735
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
20K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 20,138 bearers of the surname Milton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.74 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1735th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Milton, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.4%. The next largest groups are White (44.4%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Milton
The surname Milton originated in England in the late Anglo-Saxon period, around the 11th century. It is derived from the Old English words "mill" and "tun," meaning a settlement near a mill. The name was initially used to identify someone who lived or worked near a mill.
The earliest known record of the surname Milton is found in the Domesday Book, a great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The book mentions several individuals with the surname Milton or similar spellings, such as Mildeltune and Mildetone, living in various parts of the country.
During the Middle Ages, the name Milton appeared in various historical documents and records, including the Pipe Rolls, which were records of financial transactions maintained by the English Exchequer. One notable example is Walter de Milton, who lived in the 13th century and served as a judge and legal advisor to King Henry III.
As time passed, the name Milton spread to different regions of England, and various spellings emerged, such as Mylton, Miltown, and Milltown. These variations often reflected local dialects and pronunciation differences.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Milton was the English poet John Milton (1608-1674), renowned for his epic poem "Paradise Lost." Other notable figures include Sir Christopher Milton (1615-1692), a judge and politician, and Joseph Milton (1558-1647), a religious writer and clergyman.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Milton was also associated with several prominent families in England, including the Miltons of Oxfordshire and the Miltons of Staffordshire. Some of these families held significant landholdings and played influential roles in their respective communities.
Another notable bearer of the name Milton was Thomas Milton (1590-1677), a Puritan settler in colonial America. He was among the early English colonists who arrived in Massachusetts in the 1630s and helped establish the town of Milton, which was likely named after him or his family.
Throughout history, the surname Milton has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including writers, politicians, lawyers, clergymen, and landowners. While its origins can be traced back to the Anglo-Saxon period, the name has evolved and spread across different regions, reflecting the rich tapestry of English history and culture.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Milton
Among Census respondents with the surname Milton, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.4%. The next largest groups are White (44.4%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Milton 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 Milton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American45.4% · 9,143
- White44.4% · 8,947
- Two or more races4.8% · 963
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 796
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 174
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 115
Timeline
Historical Census data for Milton
Milton 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
#1,732
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,703
+804 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 7.02
Rank movement Down 80 places
2020
#1,735
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,138
-565 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 6.74
Rank movement Down 3 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,652 | 19,899 | 7.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,732 | 20,703 | 7.02 | +804 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 80 places |
| 2020 | #1,735 | 20,138 | 6.74 | -565 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 3 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 Milton 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 | #1,732 | #1,735 | -0.2% |
| Count | 20,703 | 20,138 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 7.02 | 6.74 | -4.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Milton bearers went from 20,703 to 20,138 (-2.7% change). The surname moved down 3 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,732 to #1,735.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Milton
FAQ
Milton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Milton?
Name Census estimates that about 23,093 living Americans carry the surname Milton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 14,842 residents.
How common is Milton?
Milton ranks #1,735 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.74 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 20,138 people with the surname Milton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (23,093), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.74 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.74 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Milton.
Has Milton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Milton went from 20,703 recorded bearers to 20,138. That is a decrease of 565 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,732 to #1,735.
What does the Census say about the background of Milton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Milton, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.4%. The next largest groups are White (44.4%) 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Milton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 45.4% (9,143 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Milton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (45.4%), White (44.4%), 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 Milton (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 Milton mean?
An English habitational surname derived from any of several places named Milton, meaning "middle town" 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 Milton (6.74 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 Milton?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Milton? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.