# Hamlet (surname)

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

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 3,227 |
| US rank (2010) | 9,994 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 95,676 people |
| Change since 2000 | +4.3% (3,094 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈhæm.lət/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | Hamblet, Hamblett, Hamlett |

## Etymology

From Latin Amlethus, as written by 13th-century Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus, and borrowed into English by way of François de Belleforest's French Hamlet, originally rendered as Hamblet in English. Ultimately from Old Danish Amlethæ, corresponding to Old Norse Amlóði (“fool”), claimed to be suggestive of the way that Hamlet acts in the play, from ama (“to annoy”).

## Who carries it

Share of people named Hamlet 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) | 61% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 34% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.9% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.4% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.2% |
| Two or more races | 1.6% |

## Similar surnames

Hamlett, Hamilton.

## 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.