2000
#2,318
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,296
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.30
Uncommon Last name
Stclair
A locational surname referring to someone from Saint-Clair in France or England, or a place with a similar name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 16,389 Americans carry the last name Stclair. That puts it at #2,466 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 20,914 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stclair 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 Stclair with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
16K
1 in 20,914
Census rank
#2,466
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
14K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 14,292 bearers of the surname Stclair in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2466th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stclair, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.2%. The next largest groups are Black (7.9%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stclair
The surname STCLAIR is of Anglo-Norman origin, derived from the Old French "seint cler" meaning "holy brightness". It is believed to have originated as a locational name for someone who lived near a place dedicated to St. Clair, a 7th-century abbot of Normandy.
The earliest recorded instances of the name STCLAIR date back to the 11th century in Normandy, France. The name was later introduced to England after the Norman Conquest of 1066, and is found in various early records and manuscripts, including the Domesday Book of 1086.
In the 12th century, the STCLAIR family gained prominence in Scotland, where they held lands in Haddingtonshire (now East Lothian). One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir William STCLAIR, who accompanied King David I of Scotland on his crusade to the Holy Land in 1138.
Another notable figure was Sir Henry STCLAIR (c. 1270-1347), a Scottish nobleman and crusader who fought in the Crusades and was later appointed Chamberlain of the Royal Household by King Robert the Bruce. The STCLAIR family later became one of the most influential families in Scotland during the Middle Ages.
In England, the STCLAIR surname was also associated with several places, including St. Clere in Oxfordshire (from which the variant spelling "SINCLAIR" is derived) and St. Clair in Somerset. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name in England was Sir John STCLAIR (c. 1350-1419), a prominent military commander who served under King Henry IV and King Henry V during the Hundred Years' War.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the STCLAIR surname spread to other parts of Europe, including France and the Netherlands. Notable figures from this period include Desiderius Erasmus STCLAIR (1466-1536), a Dutch Renaissance humanist and scholar, and René STCLAIR (1598-1677), a French Jesuit missionary and explorer who was one of the first Europeans to map the Great Lakes region of North America.
Throughout history, the STCLAIR surname has been associated with numerous notable individuals across various fields, including literature, politics, and the arts. Some other prominent bearers of the name include Arthur STCLAIR (1737-1818), an American patriot and statesman who served as the third President of the Continental Congress, and Arthur STCLAIR (1884-1961), a British author and playwright best known for his mystery and crime novels.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stclair
Among Census respondents with the surname Stclair, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.2%. The next largest groups are Black (7.9%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Stclair 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 Stclair surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.2% · 11,745
- Black or African American7.9% · 1,124
- Two or more races4.1% · 585
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 523
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 243
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 72
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stclair
Stclair 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
#2,469
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,590
+294 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 4.95
Rank movement Down 151 places
2020
#2,466
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,292
-298 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 4.78
Rank movement Up 3 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,318 | 14,296 | 5.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,469 | 14,590 | 4.95 | +294 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 151 places |
| 2020 | #2,466 | 14,292 | 4.78 | -298 bearers (-2.0%) | Up 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 Stclair 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 | #2,469 | #2,466 | 0.1% |
| Count | 14,590 | 14,292 | -2.0% |
| Per 100K | 4.95 | 4.78 | -3.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stclair bearers went from 14,590 to 14,292 (-2.0% change). The surname moved up 3 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,469 to #2,466.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Stclair
FAQ
Stclair surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stclair?
Name Census estimates that about 16,389 living Americans carry the surname Stclair. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 20,914 residents.
How common is Stclair?
Stclair ranks #2,466 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.78 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 14,292 people with the surname Stclair. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (16,389), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.78 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Stclair.
Has Stclair become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stclair went from 14,590 recorded bearers to 14,292. That is a decrease of 298 (-2.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #2,469 to #2,466.
What does the Census say about the background of Stclair?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stclair, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.2%. The next largest groups are Black (7.9%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Stclair in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.2% (11,745 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stclair appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.2%), Black (7.9%), Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Stclair (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 Stclair mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from Saint-Clair in France or England, or a place with a similar name. 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 Stclair (4.78 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 Stclair?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.