2000
#4,174
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,871
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.92
Rare Last name
Pinkston
Derived from a place name meaning "Pinca's town" or "settlement of Pinca's people" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,868 Americans carry the last name Pinkston. That puts it at #4,447 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 38,651 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pinkston 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.
Bearers in the US
8.9K
1 in 38,651
Census rank
#4,447
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,733 bearers of the surname Pinkston in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4447th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinkston, the largest self-reported group is White at 64.1%. The next largest groups are Black (26.9%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pinkston
The surname Pinkston originates from England and dates back to the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English word "pinc," meaning "hill" or "ridge," and the suffix "-tun" meaning "farm" or "enclosure." The name likely referred to someone who lived near a prominent hill or ridge.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1195, where a Richard de Pinkeston is mentioned. The spelling variations found in historical records include Pinkeston, Pynkeston, and Pynkyston.
In the 13th century, the Pinkston family held land in the village of Pinxton, near Alfreton in Derbyshire. This place name is believed to be related to the surname, with the "Pinc" element referring to the same Old English word for a hill or ridge.
One notable figure bearing the Pinkston surname was Sir John Pinkston (c. 1480 - 1557), a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of London during the reign of Henry VIII. He served as Lord Mayor of London in 1536.
Another early record of the name is found in the Calendar of Patent Rolls from 1388, which mentions a Thomas Pynkeston, a cleric from the Diocese of York.
In the 16th century, the Pinkstons were also established in Scotland, with records showing a William Pinkston (c. 1520 - 1585), a landowner in Ayrshire.
During the English Civil War in the 17th century, Captain Robert Pinkston (c. 1610 - 1678) served as a Royalist officer under King Charles I.
Another notable figure was Sir Edward Pinkston (1658 - 1719), a wealthy merchant and Member of Parliament for Sandwich in Kent during the reign of Queen Anne.
These examples illustrate the long history and widespread distribution of the Pinkston surname across England and Scotland, with its origins rooted in the Old English language and references to geographical features.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pinkston
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinkston, the largest self-reported group is White at 64.1%. The next largest groups are Black (26.9%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Pinkston 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 Pinkston surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White64.1% · 4,957
- Black or African American26.9% · 2,083
- Two or more races4.8% · 374
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 231
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 53
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 35
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pinkston
Pinkston 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
#4,292
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,291
+420 bearers (+5.3%)
Per 100,000 2.81
Rank movement Down 118 places
2020
#4,447
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,733
-558 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 2.59
Rank movement Down 155 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,174 | 7,871 | 2.92 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,292 | 8,291 | 2.81 | +420 bearers (+5.3%) | Down 118 places |
| 2020 | #4,447 | 7,733 | 2.59 | -558 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 155 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 Pinkston 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 | #4,292 | #4,447 | -3.6% |
| Count | 8,291 | 7,733 | -6.7% |
| Per 100K | 2.81 | 2.59 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pinkston bearers went from 8,291 to 7,733 (-6.7% change). The surname moved down 155 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,292 to #4,447.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Pinkston
FAQ
Pinkston surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pinkston?
Name Census estimates that about 8,868 living Americans carry the surname Pinkston. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 38,651 residents.
How common is Pinkston?
Pinkston ranks #4,447 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,733 people with the surname Pinkston. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,868), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Pinkston.
Has Pinkston become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pinkston went from 8,291 recorded bearers to 7,733. That is a decrease of 558 (-6.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,292 to #4,447.
What does the Census say about the background of Pinkston?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinkston, the largest self-reported group is White at 64.1%. The next largest groups are Black (26.9%) 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 Pinkston in the 2020 Census, accounting for 64.1% (4,957 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pinkston appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (64.1%), Black (26.9%), 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 Pinkston (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 Pinkston mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "Pinca's town" or "settlement of Pinca's people" 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 Pinkston (2.59 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 Pinkston?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.