How common is the surname Shelby?

12,303 people in the United States had the surname Shelby in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 25,095 Americans. It ranked 2,912th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Shelby?

Carroll Shelby, American automotive designer, racing driver, and entrepreneur (1923-2012), followed by John Shelby Spong.

Where is the surname Shelby most common?

Wikidata records people named Shelby in the United States.

How do you pronounce Shelby?

Shelby is /ˈʃɛlbi/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Shelby getting more or less common?

More common. 11,624 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 12,303 in 2010, up 5.8%.

Is Shelby also a first name?

Yes. Shelby is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Shelby

An English place surname, carried by 12,303 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈʃɛlbi/ 2 syllables Soundex S410 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Shelby is more common than 98.2% of them.

Origin

English origin

From a medieval name, of obscure origin, yet likely an alteration of Middle English Selby, Salibi (“dweller of the willow place”), from salwe (“willow, sallow”) + -by (“settlement, farm”).

Shelby is a place surname: taken from where an ancestor lived or came from.

One of 1,446 English surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 12,303 people named Shelby in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 25,095 Americans. That is up 5.8% since 2000, when the Census counted 11,624.

#2,912

rank among US surnames

12,303

people in 2010

4.2

per 100,000 Americans

+5.8%

change since 2000 (was #2,826)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#2,903	Ferraro	12,355	24,990
#2,904	Still	12,354	24,992
#2,905	Casper	12,351	24,998
#2,906	Cintron	12,349	25,002
#2,907	Overstreet	12,342	25,016
#2,908	Borges	12,337	25,026
#2,909	Concepcion	12,332	25,036

Who is named Shelby

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

58% of people named Shelby identified as white (not Hispanic), 36% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 58%
Black (not Hispanic) 36%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.4%
Two or more races 2.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.6%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Shelbys

5 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Carroll Shelby
American automotive designer, racing driver, and entrepreneur (1923-2012)
John Shelby Spong
American bishop (1931–2021)
Isaac Shelby
American politician (1750-1826)
Margaret Shelby
American actress (1900-1939)
Kid McCoy
American boxer (1872-1940)

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Shelby

Shelby has the Soundex code S410, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code S410.

Other English surnames

All 1,446 English surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Shelby come from?: From a medieval name, of obscure origin, yet likely an alteration of Middle English Selby, Salibi (“dweller of the willow place”), from salwe (“willow, sallow”) + -by (“settlement, farm”).
How common is the surname Shelby?: 12,303 people in the United States had the surname Shelby in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 25,095 Americans. It ranked 2,912th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Shelby?: In the 2010 Census, 58% of people named Shelby identified as white (not Hispanic), and 36% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Shelby?: Carroll Shelby, American automotive designer, racing driver, and entrepreneur (1923-2012), followed by John Shelby Spong.
Where is the surname Shelby most common?: Wikidata records people named Shelby in the United States.
How do you pronounce Shelby?: Shelby is /ˈʃɛlbi/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Shelby?: Shelby is a place surname, taken from where an ancestor lived or came from.
Is the surname Shelby getting more or less common?: More common. 11,624 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 12,303 in 2010, up 5.8%.
Is Shelby also a first name?: Yes. Shelby is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.