2000
#25,448
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 913
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.34
Rare Last name
Staunton
A locational surname referring to someone from the town of Staunton, England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,140 Americans carry the last name Staunton. That puts it at #25,932 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.33 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 300,662 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Staunton 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 Staunton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.1K
1 in 300,662
Census rank
#25,932
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
994
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 994 bearers of the surname Staunton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.33 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 25932nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Staunton, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Staunton
The surname Staunton is of English origin, derived from the place name Staunton, which is found in various locations across England. The name itself is believed to have originated from the Old English words "stan" meaning stone and "tun" meaning enclosure or farm, suggesting it may have been a description of a settlement surrounded by stone walls or located near a prominent stone formation.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears in various spellings such as Stantone and Stantun. These entries refer to several places in counties like Nottinghamshire, Staffordshire, and Wiltshire, indicating the widespread distribution of the name across different regions.
One notable early bearer of the name was Sir William Staunton, a 13th-century landowner and knight from Nottinghamshire, who played a role in the Wars of the Barons during the reign of King Henry III.
In the 16th century, Sir George Staunton (1528-1601) was a prominent English diplomat and politician who served as Secretary of State under Queen Elizabeth I. He was also a member of Parliament and held various important positions in the English government.
Another notable figure was Sir George Leonard Staunton (1737-1801), a British diplomat and writer who served as Secretary to Lord Macartney's embassy to China in 1792-1794. He published an account of the embassy's journey, which provided valuable insights into Chinese culture and society at the time.
In the field of chess, Howard Staunton (1810-1874) was a renowned English chess player and writer. He is best known for his contributions to the development of modern chess notation and for his role in promoting the game through his writings and the design of the Staunton chess set, which became the standard for chess piece design.
Another significant bearer of the name was Sir Howard Staunton (1590-1667), an English lawyer and judge who served as Lord Chancellor of Ireland from 1628 to 1639.
While the surname Staunton has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and the British colonial expansion. However, the earliest and most significant historical references to the name can be traced back to its English origins and the various notable individuals who bore this surname throughout history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Staunton
Among Census respondents with the surname Staunton, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Staunton 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 Staunton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.4% · 779
- Black or African American12.6% · 125
- Two or more races4.7% · 47
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 29
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Staunton
Staunton 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
#25,833
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 953
+40 bearers (+4.4%)
Per 100,000 0.32
Rank movement Down 385 places
2020
#25,932
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 994
+41 bearers (+4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.33
Rank movement Down 99 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #25,448 | 913 | 0.34 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #25,833 | 953 | 0.32 | +40 bearers (+4.4%) | Down 385 places |
| 2020 | #25,932 | 994 | 0.33 | +41 bearers (+4.3%) | Down 99 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 Staunton 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 | #25,833 | #25,932 | -0.4% |
| Count | 953 | 994 | 4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.32 | 0.33 | 3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Staunton bearers went from 953 to 994 (+4.3% change). The surname moved down 99 positions in the national ranking, going from #25,833 to #25,932.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Staunton
FAQ
Staunton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Staunton?
Name Census estimates that about 1,140 living Americans carry the surname Staunton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 300,662 residents.
How common is Staunton?
Staunton ranks #25,932 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.33 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 994 people with the surname Staunton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,140), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.33 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.33 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Staunton.
Has Staunton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Staunton went from 953 recorded bearers to 994. That is an increase of 41 (+4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #25,833 to #25,932.
What does the Census say about the background of Staunton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Staunton, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Staunton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.4% (779 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Staunton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.4%), Black (12.6%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Staunton (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 Staunton mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from the town of Staunton, England. 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 Staunton (0.33 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 Staunton?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.