2000
#1,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,566
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.99
Uncommon Last name
Winn
A surname of English origin referring to someone who lived near or worked at a meadow or pasture.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 24,775 Americans carry the last name Winn. That puts it at #1,616 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.23 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 13,835 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Winn 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 Winn with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
25K
1 in 13,835
Census rank
#1,616
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
22K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 21,605 bearers of the surname Winn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.23 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1616th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Winn, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.2%. The next largest groups are Black (17.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Winn
The surname Winn is of English origin, believed to have derived from the Old English word "wine," meaning "friend" or "protector." It is thought to have initially been used as a nickname or descriptive name for someone who was considered a loyal and trustworthy companion.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Winn date back to the 12th century in various parts of England, particularly in the counties of Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cheshire. It is found in medieval records such as the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from the late 12th century, where it appears as "Wyne" and "Wynne."
During the 13th century, the name Winn began to appear in various forms, including "Winne," "Wyn," and "Wynne." One notable early bearer of the name was Roger Wynn, a landowner from Cheshire, who was mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Lancashire in 1286.
In the 14th century, the name continued to spread across England, and several notable individuals emerged. One such person was John Wynn, a merchant from London, who was mentioned in the Patent Rolls of 1348. Another was Thomas Wynn, a prominent lawyer and judge from Gwydir, Wales, who lived from 1380 to 1460.
As the centuries progressed, the Winn family established themselves as prominent landowners and influential figures in various parts of England and Wales. One of the most notable members of the family was Sir John Wynn, 1st Baronet of Gwydir (1553-1627), who served as a member of Parliament and was a prominent figure in the Welsh gentry.
Other notable individuals with the surname Winn include Robert Wynn (1697-1763), a Welsh mathematician and astronomer; Samuel Wynn (1629-1687), an English clergyman and author; and Richard Wynn (1588-1649), a Welsh politician and Member of Parliament during the English Civil War.
Throughout its history, the surname Winn has been associated with various places and regions across England and Wales, including Winsford in Cheshire, Winnington in Shropshire, and Wynne Hall in Denbighshire, Wales, which served as the ancestral home of the Wynne family for several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Winn
Among Census respondents with the surname Winn, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.2%. The next largest groups are Black (17.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Winn 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 Winn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.2% · 15,591
- Black or African American17.6% · 3,809
- Two or more races4.2% · 911
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 785
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 367
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 142
Timeline
Historical Census data for Winn
Winn 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
#1,611
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 22,316
+750 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 7.57
Rank movement Down 79 places
2020
#1,616
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,605
-711 bearers (-3.2%)
Per 100,000 7.23
Rank movement Down 5 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,532 | 21,566 | 7.99 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,611 | 22,316 | 7.57 | +750 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 79 places |
| 2020 | #1,616 | 21,605 | 7.23 | -711 bearers (-3.2%) | Down 5 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 Winn 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 | #1,611 | #1,616 | -0.3% |
| Count | 22,316 | 21,605 | -3.2% |
| Per 100K | 7.57 | 7.23 | -4.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Winn bearers went from 22,316 to 21,605 (-3.2% change). The surname moved down 5 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,611 to #1,616.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Winn
FAQ
Winn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Winn?
Name Census estimates that about 24,775 living Americans carry the surname Winn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 13,835 residents.
How common is Winn?
Winn ranks #1,616 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.23 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 21,605 people with the surname Winn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (24,775), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.23 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.23 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Winn.
Has Winn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Winn went from 22,316 recorded bearers to 21,605. That is a decrease of 711 (-3.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,611 to #1,616.
What does the Census say about the background of Winn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Winn, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.2%. The next largest groups are Black (17.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Winn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.2% (15,591 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Winn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.2%), Black (17.6%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Winn (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 Winn mean?
A surname of English origin referring to someone who lived near or worked at a meadow or pasture. 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 Winn (7.23 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 Americans have the surname Winn?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.