# York (surname)

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

A habitational surname from Old English from the city or the county; See also Yorke.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Norse |
| Type | place, taken from where an ancestor lived or came from |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 53,059 |
| US rank (2010) | 642 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 5,819 people |
| Change since 2000 | +3.4% (51,334 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /jɔɹk/, 1 syllable |
| Variant spellings | Yorke |

## Etymology

From Middle English York, Ȝork, from Old Norse Jórk, Jórvík, from Old English Eoforwīċ, from Latin Eborācum, ultimately from Proto-Brythonic *Eβrọg (compare Welsh Efrog, from Old Welsh Caer Ebrauc, from Proto-Brythonic *Eβrọg), from *eburos (“yew”) + *-ākom (positive suffix). Displaced Middle English Everwik, from the Old English.

## Who carries it

Share of people named York 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) | 86% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 8.0% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.3% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.9% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.0% |
| Two or more races | 2.0% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named York in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom.

## People named York

- Michael York, British actor
- Dick York, American radio, stage, film, and television actor (1928-1992)
- Kathleen York, American actress and singer-songwriter
- Francine York, American actress, showgirl (1936–2017)
- Morgan York, American actress, singer, songwriter and writer
- Taylor York, American guitarist and record producer
- Mike York, American ice hockey player
- Herbert York, American physicist (1921-2009)
- Gabe York, American basketball player (born 1993)
- Jeff York, American actor (1912–1995)
- John York, American musician
- Michael York, Australian field hockey player

and 6 more on Wikidata.

## Similar surnames

Yorke, Yarosh.

## 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.