# Drinkwater (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/drinkwater/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname transferred from the nickname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | nickname, from a description or nickname of an ancestor |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 2,135 |
| US rank (2010) | 14,084 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 144,611 people |
| Change since 2000 | +2.2% (2,089 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From drink + water, a nickname given to a pauper or miser, unable or unwilling to afford beer; or alternatively, a nickname given to an innkeeper or a noted tippler.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Drinkwater in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 88% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 6.0% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.1% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.8% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.0% |
| Two or more races | 1.9% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Drinkwater in the United Kingdom.

## People named Drinkwater

- Carol Drinkwater, British actress and author

## Similar surnames

Drinkard, Deering, Dearing, Doering, Derringer, Darrington, Deramus, Doremus, Dorrance, Dirienzo, Direnzo, Durrance.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.