2000
#4,831
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,669
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.47
Rare Last name
Tyner
An occupational surname for someone who tanned animal hides or worked with leather.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,316 Americans carry the last name Tyner. That puts it at #5,272 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.13 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 46,850 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tyner 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
7.3K
1 in 46,850
Census rank
#5,272
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,380 bearers of the surname Tyner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.13 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5272nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyner, the largest self-reported group is White at 71.0%. The next largest groups are Black (18.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tyner
The surname Tyner is of English origin, derived from an occupational name for a maker or seller of tins or pans, from the Old English word "tynere." It likely emerged in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century.
The name was initially found in various parts of England, particularly in the counties of Somerset, Gloucestershire, and Wiltshire, where the tin and metalworking trades were prevalent. Early spellings of the name included Tynner, Tynor, and Tynour.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1327, which mention a John le Tynere. The Lay Subsidy Rolls of Somerset from 1327 also list a William le Tynour.
In the 15th century, the name appears in various records, such as the Register of the Gild of the Holy Cross in Stratford-upon-Avon, which includes a John Tynor in 1490. The Feet of Fines for Somerset from 1508 mention a Thomas Tyner of Bruton.
Notable individuals with the surname Tyner throughout history include:
1. Richard Tyner (c. 1535-1592), an English Protestant reformer and Church of England clergyman who served as the Archdeacon of Coventry from 1584 until his death.
2. John Tyner (1629-1671), an English Puritan minister and writer who was ejected from his living after the Restoration of the monarchy in 1662.
3. Nathaniel Tyner (1668-1737), an English merchant and ship owner who settled in the British colonies in America, becoming a prominent figure in the early history of Maryland.
4. Thomas Tyner (1801-1876), an American politician who served as a United States Representative from Indiana from 1837 to 1839.
5. James Tyner (1826-1904), an American businessman and politician who served as the 14th Governor of Indiana from 1873 to 1877.
The surname Tyner has also been associated with various place names, such as Tyner's Station, a former settlement in Tennessee, and Tyner, a community in Texas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tyner
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyner, the largest self-reported group is White at 71.0%. The next largest groups are Black (18.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Tyner 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 Tyner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White71.0% · 4,532
- Black or African American18.3% · 1,169
- Two or more races5.0% · 318
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 171
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.1% · 134
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 56
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tyner
Tyner 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
#5,131
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,819
+150 bearers (+2.2%)
Per 100,000 2.31
Rank movement Down 300 places
2020
#5,272
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,380
-439 bearers (-6.4%)
Per 100,000 2.13
Rank movement Down 141 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,831 | 6,669 | 2.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,131 | 6,819 | 2.31 | +150 bearers (+2.2%) | Down 300 places |
| 2020 | #5,272 | 6,380 | 2.13 | -439 bearers (-6.4%) | Down 141 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 Tyner 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 | #5,131 | #5,272 | -2.7% |
| Count | 6,819 | 6,380 | -6.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.31 | 2.13 | -7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tyner bearers went from 6,819 to 6,380 (-6.4% change). The surname moved down 141 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,131 to #5,272.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Tyner
FAQ
Tyner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tyner?
Name Census estimates that about 7,316 living Americans carry the surname Tyner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 46,850 residents.
How common is Tyner?
Tyner ranks #5,272 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.13 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,380 people with the surname Tyner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,316), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.13 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.13 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Tyner.
Has Tyner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tyner went from 6,819 recorded bearers to 6,380. That is a decrease of 439 (-6.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,131 to #5,272.
What does the Census say about the background of Tyner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tyner, the largest self-reported group is White at 71.0%. The next largest groups are Black (18.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Tyner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.0% (4,532 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tyner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (71.0%), Black (18.3%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Tyner (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 Tyner mean?
An occupational surname for someone who tanned animal hides or worked with leather. 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 Tyner (2.13 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 share the surname Tyner?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.