2000
#6,957
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,445
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.65
Rare Last name
Warrington
A locational surname referring to a town in Lancashire or Buckinghamshire, England, likely meaning "settlement by the weir."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,551 Americans carry the last name Warrington. That puts it at #8,007 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.33 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 75,314 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Warrington 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 Warrington with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.6K
1 in 75,314
Census rank
#8,007
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,969 bearers of the surname Warrington in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.33 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8007th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Warrington, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.7%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Warrington
The surname Warrington has its origins in England and dates back to the medieval period. The name is derived from the place name Warrington, which is a town located in the county of Cheshire. The place name is believed to come from the Old English words "wær" meaning "weir" or "dam" and "ing" meaning "people" or "settlement," referring to a settlement by a weir or dam.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Walintone." This was an early spelling variation of the place name Warrington. The name likely evolved from "Walintone" to "Warrington" over time as the spelling and pronunciation changed.
In the 13th century, a record from 1279 mentions a "William de Warenton," using an early spelling form of the surname. This suggests that the surname had become established by that time, derived from the place name Warrington.
Notable individuals with the surname Warrington throughout history include:
1. Sir Thomas Warrington (c. 1574-1638), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Wigan.
2. Ralph Warrington (1591-1640), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge.
3. Henry Warrington (1801-1877), an English cricketer who played for the Marylebone Cricket Club and All-England Eleven teams in the early days of the sport.
4. Theodore Warrington (1829-1899), an American politician who served as the Mayor of Philadelphia from 1895 to 1899.
5. William Warrington (1797-1868), an English painter known for his landscapes and historical scenes.
While the surname Warrington has its roots in the town of the same name in Cheshire, it has spread across England and beyond over the centuries. The name's association with the town and its early recorded instances in medieval times contribute to its rich historical significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Warrington
Among Census respondents with the surname Warrington, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.7%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Warrington 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 Warrington surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.7% · 3,202
- Black or African American7.3% · 288
- Two or more races4.8% · 190
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 134
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.8% · 113
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 42
Timeline
Historical Census data for Warrington
Warrington 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
#7,441
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,477
+32 bearers (+0.7%)
Per 100,000 1.52
Rank movement Down 484 places
2020
#8,007
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,969
-508 bearers (-11.3%)
Per 100,000 1.33
Rank movement Down 566 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,957 | 4,445 | 1.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,441 | 4,477 | 1.52 | +32 bearers (+0.7%) | Down 484 places |
| 2020 | #8,007 | 3,969 | 1.33 | -508 bearers (-11.3%) | Down 566 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 Warrington 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 | #7,441 | #8,007 | -7.6% |
| Count | 4,477 | 3,969 | -11.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.52 | 1.33 | -12.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Warrington bearers went from 4,477 to 3,969 (-11.3% change). The surname moved down 566 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,441 to #8,007.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Warrington
FAQ
Warrington surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Warrington?
Name Census estimates that about 4,551 living Americans carry the surname Warrington. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 75,314 residents.
How common is Warrington?
Warrington ranks #8,007 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.33 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,969 people with the surname Warrington. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,551), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.33 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.33 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Warrington.
Has Warrington become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Warrington went from 4,477 recorded bearers to 3,969. That is a decrease of 508 (-11.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,441 to #8,007.
What does the Census say about the background of Warrington?
Among Census respondents with the surname Warrington, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.7%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) 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 Warrington in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.7% (3,202 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Warrington appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.7%), Black (7.3%), 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 Warrington (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 Warrington mean?
A locational surname referring to a town in Lancashire or Buckinghamshire, England, likely meaning "settlement by the weir." 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 Warrington (1.33 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 are called Warrington?
Find out how many people have the surname Warrington on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.