Townsend Surname

4,079th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 137,771 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
Jamaica

Townsend Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'at the townend' or town's-end, from residence there by. The 'h' in Townshend was an early intrusion. Bridgeend, Pounds-end, Greaves-end, Woods-end, Streets-end, and Wickend are all found with the same intrusive —h— in mediaeval registers (v.

Read More About This Surname

Townsend Surname Distribution Map

By incidenceBy frequencyBy rank
Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ARank (high to low)Rank (low to high)
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States88,3631:4,102454
England23,9531:2,326297
Australia10,9601:2,463324
Canada5,3691:6,8631,011
Jamaica1,8561:1,546266
South Africa1,6251:33,3404,256
New Zealand1,3451:3,367513
Wales1,1211:2,761305
Ireland6031:7,8091,098
Scotland4671:11,4641,546
France2201:301,92146,106
Thailand1911:369,83464,954
Brazil1401:1,529,10250,957
Ecuador1361:116,9556,534
Spain1201:389,60021,500
Germany1181:682,25052,603
Northern Ireland1041:17,7412,266
Netherlands841:201,03827,835
Zimbabwe841:183,78921,931
Chile711:248,1197,493
Mexico581:2,140,10719,397
Panama571:68,6362,986
Liberia541:81,6406,796
Singapore391:141,2236,278
Trinidad and Tobago381:35,8943,529
Belgium371:310,72035,739
Argentina361:1,187,31770,591
Qatar311:76,0647,685
Sweden301:328,22522,987
Portugal281:372,08012,265
Peru271:1,177,19020,369
Isle of Man261:3,301713
Jersey251:3,968780
Switzerland241:342,20526,446
Dominican Republic231:453,60614,824
Denmark201:282,23621,168
Norway201:257,11427,149
Malaysia191:1,552,32864,490
Philippines191:5,328,328173,877
Cyprus131:68,0677,075
Hong Kong121:611,2903,500
Italy121:5,096,391108,968
China111:124,301,9616,553
Nigeria101:17,714,276277,641
Hungary91:1,090,69749,203
Mauritius91:143,7138,076
Japan81:15,980,53747,042
Russia81:18,015,382436,635
United Arab Emirates81:1,145,28440,289
Finland71:785,24338,644
United States Virgin Islands71:15,7682,111
Antigua and Barbuda61:16,5281,436
Bermuda51:13,0561,849
Czechia51:2,126,694115,412
Tanzania51:10,588,32375,430
Fiji41:223,5982,635
Greece41:2,769,948101,568
Guatemala41:4,020,6677,726
Kuwait41:950,17418,811
Zambia41:3,962,48038,524
Afghanistan31:10,717,72835,605
Cook Islands31:6,0601,122
Ghana31:9,006,89723,626
Indonesia31:44,083,065698,220
Nicaragua31:2,007,0306,490
Vietnam31:30,882,0184,101
Austria21:4,257,71899,224
Bahamas21:195,8761,708
Bangladesh21:79,678,38625,993
Colombia21:23,887,03632,612
Costa Rica21:2,390,03410,205
Egypt21:45,967,877132,655
India21:383,532,6911,645,216
Jordan21:4,421,21822,351
Kenya21:23,089,95083,168
Nepal21:14,240,47817,812
Oman21:1,843,9869,590
Papua New Guinea21:4,076,858165,791
South Korea21:25,620,1284,175
Taiwan21:11,722,37363,559
Tajikistan21:4,193,34612,835
Angola11:26,989,21411,853
Azerbaijan11:9,649,12247,873
Bahrain11:1,348,60810,432
Barbados11:287,4482,772
Bolivia11:10,616,43417,077
British Virgin Islands11:31,5941,029
Brunei11:418,7313,893
Dominica11:75,891912
Iraq11:35,021,65431,813
Libya11:6,243,9746,186
Micronesia11:106,2431,380
Monaco11:37,0664,748
Mongolia11:2,825,28917,010
Morocco11:34,476,099111,471
Namibia11:2,409,40119,676
New Caledonia11:276,22310,363
Paraguay11:7,236,74616,511
Puerto Rico11:3,550,1399,109
Saint Barthelemy11:9,614134
Saudi Arabia11:30,855,81763,028
Seychelles11:92,3931,532
Slovakia11:5,336,450140,422
Syria11:19,301,02222,457
Turkey11:77,821,422191,047
Uganda11:39,039,279258,887
Ukraine11:45,522,696503,646
Venezuela11:30,204,07785,459
Show All Nations
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland3381:13,1061,747
Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ARank (high to low)Rank (low to high)
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England12,3201:1,979274
Wales2701:5,809383
Scotland1171:31,9932,667
Guernsey181:1,814317
Jersey61:8,6471,503
Isle of Man31:18,0901,402
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States16,4291:3,057351

Townsend (910) may also be a first name.

Townsend Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'at the townend' or town's-end, from residence there by. The 'h' in Townshend was an early intrusion. Bridgeend, Pounds-end, Greaves-end, Woods-end, Streets-end, and Wickend are all found with the same intrusive —h— in mediaeval registers (v. my English Surnames, 3rd edit, for a long list).' At the town-end is still a familiar phrase in the North of England.

Geoffrey de le Tuneshende, Norfolk, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Henry atte Tunesende, Oxfordshire, ibid.

Alice atte Tunishende, Buckinghamshire, ibid.

Richard de la Tuneshend, Close Roll, 2 Edward I.

Ricardus atte ye Thounhende, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Johannes atte Tonehende, 1379: ibid.

1528. Married — Thomas Townesend and Anne Bradeshawe: St. Dionis Backchurch.

1760. Married — Thomas Townshend, Esq., and Elizabeth Powys: St. George, Hanover Square.

— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

(English) Dweller at the End of A Town (Village) [Old English tún, genit. túnes + ende] Henry atte Tunesende.—Hundred Rolls A somonour is a rennere up and doun. . .

And is y-bet [beaten] at everich tounes ende.—Chaucer, Cant. Tales, D 1283, 85.

Unto yone hospitall at the tounisend.— Henryson, Test. of Cresseid, 382.

The intrus. -h- in the second form of this name is found as early as the 13th cent.

— Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

“House at the end of the Town” in Old English.

— South African Surnames (1965) by Eric Rosenthal

(English) Dweller at the outskirts of the village.

— Dictionary of American Family Names (1956) by Elsdon Coles Smith

"The town's end," from residence there. The forms in the Hundred Bolls, are Ate-Touneshend, Ate-Tunesend, Ate-Tunishende, &c. The analogous name Attestreteshend-"at the street's end"-is found in the same rolls, as are also Ad Caput Villae, Ad Finem Villae, and Bynethetoun, i.e., "beneath the town." This surname, though of essentially plebeian origin, emerged from the ignobile vulgus at an early period after its adoption, being traced to the year 1377, in gentle degree at Snoring Magna, co. Norfolk. In 1398, the ancestor of the Marquis Townshend was at Rainham, the present seat of the family. Leland speaking of the head of the house, in his day, says: "the grandfather of Townsende now living, was a mean man of substance." Mr. Shirley calls this a ' defamatory account,' and so it may be regarded, if taken in the sense of a wealthy miser; but the old Itinerarian doubtless means a person of moderate fortune, which is no disparagement. See Noble and Gentle Men.

— Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

Local. One who lived at the end of the town.

— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names (1857) by William Arthur

See Townshend. The name included various families, and was local.

— The Norman People (1874)

A location name in Devon.

— British Family Names: Their Origin and Meaning (1903) by Henry Barber
DNA test information
Display Statistics on:

Townsend Demographics

Average Male Townsend Height

177.31 cm

Average male height (US):
175.3 cm
Sample size: 1,432 (2014)

Average Female Townsend Height

162.59 cm

Average female height (US):
161.5 cm
Sample size: 208 (2014)

Sample is predominantly from Anglosphere countries

View the tallest/shortest surnames in the world

Townsend Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Townsend Come From? nationality or country of origin

Townsend occurs most in The United States. It may be rendered in the variant forms:. Click here for other potential spellings of Townsend.

How Common Is The Last Name Townsend? popularity and diffusion

The last name Townsend is the 4,079th most widely held surname throughout the world It is held by approximately 1 in 52,896 people. This last name occurs predominantly in The Americas, where 67 percent of Townsend live; 65 percent live in North America and 65 percent live in Anglo-North America. It is also the 268,878th most commonly occurring given name at a global level, held by 910 people.

This surname is most numerous in The United States, where it is borne by 88,363 people, or 1 in 4,102. In The United States it is primarily concentrated in: Texas, where 9 percent reside, California, where 7 percent reside and Florida, where 6 percent reside. Not including The United States Townsend exists in 107 countries. It also occurs in England, where 17 percent reside and Australia, where 8 percent reside.

Townsend Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The frequency of Townsend has changed through the years. In The United States the share of the population with the surname expanded 538 percent between 1880 and 2014; in England it expanded 194 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Wales it expanded 415 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Ireland it expanded 178 percent between 1901 and 2014 and in Scotland it expanded 399 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Townsend Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those carrying the last name is predominantly Anglican (55%) in Ireland.

In The United States those bearing the Townsend last name are 11.99% more likely to be registered Republicans than The US average, with 58.76% registered with the party.

The amount Townsend earn in different countries varies greatly. In Norway they earn 226.6% more than the national average, earning 1,130,280 kr per year; in Peru they earn 406.65% more than the national average, earning S/. 98,215 per year; in South Africa they earn 34.52% more than the national average, earning R 319,668 per year; in United States they earn 4.8% less than the national average, earning $41,079 USD per year and in Canada they earn 3.07% more than the national average, earning $51,210 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ASimilarity (high to low)Similarity (low to high)Prevalent jurisdiction A-ZPrevalent jurisdiction Z-A
SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Townshend943,257/
Towensend9429/
Townscend944/
Thownsend943/
Townssend942/
Townnsend942/
Townsends942/
Touwnsend941/
Townseend941/
Townsaend941/
Ttownsend941/
Townseund940/
Towwnsend940/
Townsendd940/
Townsnd935/
Townsent8814/
Tawnsend888/
Townzend885/
Tovnsend884/
Townsemd884/
Townsind880/
Townsendová841/
Townchend821/
Townshind820/
Show All Similar Surnames

Search for Another Surname

Townsend Reference & Research

TOWNSEND FamilyTree DNA Group - A group collating DNA test results for those who bear the surname, includes results of DNA tests and discussions.

TOWNSEND FamilyTree DNA Project - A description of a group researching the paternal lines of men who bear the surname with the help of DNA analysis.

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Townsend
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis