Skip to content
Name Lineage

    The surname Winchester

    A Latin place surname, carried by 10,480 people in the United States.

    Pronounced /ˈwɪnt͡ʃɛstə(ɹ)/ 3 syllables Soundex W522

    Winchester: #3,413 of 162,253 surnames in the 2010 US Census #1Smith#160,975Doriott#10Martinez#100Jimenez#1,000Archer#10,001Dubon Winchester #3,413, 10,480 people Winchester: #3,413 of 162,253 surnames in the 2010 US Census #1Smith#160,975Doriott#100Jimenez Winchester #3,413, 10,480 people
    Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Winchester is more common than 97.9% of them.

    Origin

    Latin origin

    From Middle English Wynchester, Winchestre, from Old English Wintanċeaster, from Latin Venta Belgārum (literally “Venta of the Belgae”), perhaps ultimately from Proto-Celtic *wentā (“town, place”), Proto-Indo-European *h₁wen- (“place (?)”) + Old English ċeaster, from Latin castra (“camp”). The bottle is named for the former customary units of the English city. The rifle is named after American businessman Oliver Winchester (1810–1880). The computer disk is named for the rifle.

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

    One of 91 Latin surnames on this site.

    Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

    How common it is

    2010 US Census

    There were 10,480 people named Winchester in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 29,460 Americans. That is up 2.8% since 2000, when the Census counted 10,199.

    #3,413
    rank among US surnames
    10,480
    people in 2010
    3.5
    per 100,000 Americans
    +2.8%
    change since 2000 (was #3,212)
    RankSurnamePeople1 in
    #3,404Broderick10,50429,393
    #3,405Waldrop10,50329,396
    #3,406Lemke10,50129,402
    #3,407Snead10,50029,404
    #3,408Seifert10,49929,407
    #3,409Ingle10,49729,413
    #3,412Olivo10,48329,452

    Who is named Winchester

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

    78% of people named Winchester identified as white (not Hispanic), 15% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.3% as two or more races.

    • White (not Hispanic) 78%
    • Black (not Hispanic) 15%
    • Two or more races 2.3%
    • Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.1%
    • American Indian and Alaska Native 1.1%
    • Asian and Pacific Islander 0.8%

    Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

    Famous Winchesters

    7 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

    • Philip Winchester
      American stage actor, television actor and film actor, born 1981
    • Oliver Winchester
      American businessman and politician (1810-1880)
    • Sarah Winchester
      American heiress and occultist (1839–1922)
    • Jesse Winchester
      American-Canadian singer-songwriter, producer, 1944–2014
    • Jacarra Winchester
      American wrestler (1992-)
    • Brad Winchester
      American ice hockey player, born 1981
    • Lem Winchester
      American recording artist, vibraphonist, jazz musician, police officer (1928–1961)

    Other Latin surnames

    All 91 Latin surnames

    Questions

    Where does the surname Winchester come from?
    From Middle English Wynchester, Winchestre, from Old English Wintanċeaster, from Latin Venta Belgārum (literally “Venta of the Belgae”), perhaps ultimately from Proto-Celtic *wentā (“town, place”), Proto-Indo-European *h₁wen- (“place (?)”) + Old English ċeaster, from Latin castra (“camp”). The…
    How common is the surname Winchester?
    10,480 people in the United States had the surname Winchester in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 29,460 Americans. It ranked 3,413th of 162,253 surnames.
    What ethnicity is the surname Winchester?
    In the 2010 Census, 78% of people named Winchester identified as white (not Hispanic), and 15% as Black (not Hispanic).
    Who is the most famous person named Winchester?
    Philip Winchester, American stage actor, television actor and film actor, followed by Oliver Winchester.
    Where is the surname Winchester most common?
    Wikidata records people named Winchester in the United States.
    How do you pronounce Winchester?
    Winchester is /ˈwɪnt͡ʃɛstə(ɹ)/, 3 syllables.
    What type of surname is Winchester?
    Winchester is a place surname, taken from where an ancestor lived or came from.
    Is the surname Winchester getting more or less common?
    More common. 10,199 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 10,480 in 2010, up 2.8%.