Explore the Family Name Brookfield
The meaning of Brookfield
English (Lancashire): from Middle English brok (Old English brōc) ‘stream, brook’ + feld ‘open country’, a habitational name from any of various minor places so named, in particular Brookfield House in Nether Peover, Cheshire, recorded as le Brocfeld in the late 13th century. Alternatively, the surname may be topographic, for someone who lived by a piece of open land near a brook.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Brookfield in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname 'Brookfield' has seen a moderate increase between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it ranked 54,643 in terms of commonality with a count of 353 individuals bearing this name, while by 2010, its rank had improved to 51,396 with 405 people carrying the surname - an increase of 14.73%. The proportion of individuals named Brookfield per 100,000 people also increased from 0.13 to 0.14 during this same period.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #54,643 | #51,396 | 5.94% |
| Count | 353 | 405 | 14.73% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.13 | 0.14 | 7.69% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Brookfield
Turning to ethnic identity, the data from the Decennial U.S. Census shows some changes in the distribution amongst those with the surname 'Brookfield' over the first decade of the 21st century. Individuals identifying as White made up the majority of Brookfields both in 2000 (81.30%) and 2010 (79.01%), though there was a slight decrease in this group. Those identifying as Black saw an increase from 14.45% to 16.05% over the decade. There was a significant increase in the proportion of Brookfields identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander from 1.42% in 2000 to 1.98% in 2010. Notably, the data shows a new demographic in 2010 - those identifying as being of two or more races, which was not represented in 2000. Conversely, the number of people identifying as Hispanic dropped to zero in 2010.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 81.3% | 79.01% | -2.82% |
| Black | 14.45% | 16.05% | 11.07% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 1.42% | 1.98% | 39.44% |
| Two or More Races | 0% | 1.73% | 0% |
| Hispanic | 1.7% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |