The Middleton surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 42,578 people carried this name — #813 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 6,930 people counted. That is up 5% from 40,708 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Middleton surname

An English and Scottish habitational surname from Old English from any of the places.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Middleton» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of Middleton’.

An early record he cites: Johannes de Midillton, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 531 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 6 births for the Middleton name in 1890.

Most were registered in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 300 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. One of them was indexed under another spelling of the name.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born, 1890

Ulster 3
Leinster 2
Munster 1

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 48 people named Middleton live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 35
Santa Fe 13

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 42 people named Middleton.

20 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 5 départements, most often Guadeloupe.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born

Born outside France 20
Guadeloupe 13
Pas-de-Calais 3
Paris 3
Yvelines 2
Alpes-Maritimes 1

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

27 people named Middleton live in Switzerland.

They live in 5 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Geneva.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Geneva 9
Vaud 6
Valais 5
Aargau 4
Fribourg 3

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In the Nordic population registers

55 people named Middleton are counted in Sweden and Finland.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 32
Finland (2026) 23

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Middleton was found among the farmers of 11 counties.

It was most frequent in Warwickshire: 42 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 238. Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Warwickshire 42
Northamptonshire 25
Norfolk 22
Derbyshire 20
Yorkshire, West Riding 17
Durham 16
Staffordshire 12
Cheshire 11

And 3 more counties.

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In Scotland, 1880s

Middleton was 16 in every 10,000 names in Scotland.

That is about 1 in 625. Its home there, in Guppy’s words: “Aberdeen district.” He counted the more than 20,000 names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, taking Scotland as a whole, and listed only the names that reached 10 in every 10,000.

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), appendix: alphabetical list of the most frequent Scottish names, p. 592 — public domain · names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, per 10,000 for the whole country.

In Scotland’s registers today

Middleton was recorded 89 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 291st most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 115. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

72 families named Middleton, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 369 people lived in those households, 5.1 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 4 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

South Carolina 26
Pennsylvania 14
Virginia 10
Maryland 9
North Carolina 9
Connecticut 2
Massachusetts 1
New York 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 253 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Middleton in American newspapers,
1907.

Newspaper page from The Salt Lake Herald carrying the name Middleton
The Salt Lake Herald 1907-07-21
Newspaper page from The Mirror And Farmer carrying the name Middleton
The Mirror And Farmer 1907-07-25
Newspaper page from The Birmingham Age-herald carrying the name Middleton
The Birmingham Age-herald 1907-07-21

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 5,285 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Middleton in Australian newspapers,
1810s–2000s.

69,095 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Middleton. The most, 11,462, date from the 1930s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in South Australia, at 1.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 23,866
Victoria 14,904
South Australia 10,403
Queensland 9,393
Western Australia 6,867
Tasmania 2,895
ACT (Canberra) 328
Northern Territory 43

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Middleton.

Who carried it

People named Middleton,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Peter Middleton d. 1781 · physician
  • Robert Middleton d. 1610 · politician
  • John Middleton d. 1441 · politician
  • Richard Middleton d. 1271 · politician
  • Henry Middleton d. 1587 · printer
  • Richard Middleton d. 1641 · vicar

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Middleton,
in the records of 7 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States3,728 records

3,728 records of the Middleton name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 1,319
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 787
  • Other U.S. records 1,622
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Wayne Lee Middleton

    Born 1946; from North Babylon, New York. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1967 in Long An, South Vietnam. Buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Hattie M. Middleton

    Born 1899 in Ohio. Enlisted 1944 in the Women's Army Corps at Fort Hayes Columbus; physician. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1995, buried at Resurrection Cemetery, Michigan.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Harry Richard Middleton

    Born 1923; from Nappanee, Indiana. U.S. Air Force; declared dead 1951 in Korea. Buried at National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona, Phoenix, Arizona.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)

Showing 3 of 3,728 records for Middleton in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain).

Australia2,620 records

2,620 records of the Middleton name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 1,470
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 482
  • Other Australian records 668
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Jonathan Middleton

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Triton, sailing from London in 1842. Native of Thenford, Northamptonshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1848.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Maria Middleton

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Nautilus, sailing from Woolwich in 1838. Native of Clunbury, Shropshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1844. Married 1845 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 36.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Thomas Middleton

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Andromeda, sailing from London in 1826. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1838.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 2,620 records for Middleton in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · City of Ballarat, Avenue of Honour Plaques (CC BY 3.0 AU). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain).

Canada356 records

356 records of the Middleton name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 157
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 46
  • Other Canadian records 153
  1. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Harry Middleton

    Left New York in 1783 aboard the Clinton, bound for Annapolis and St Johns, aged 50.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record John Middleton

    Came to Ontario in 1875 aboard the Prussian, landing at Quebec, bound for Scarboro Jn., Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Jeanie Chessor Middleton

    Buried in 1984 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 87.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Showing 3 of 356 records for Middleton in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

United Kingdom204 records

204 records of the Middleton name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 120
  • Scottish rolls of honour, First World War 35
  • Other British records 49
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record Alfred Saunders Middleton

    Born 1892 at Schoolhouse; clerk. Killed or died by 1921. Named in the Morayshire roll of honour (1921).

    National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record William Middleton

    Buried in 1904 at Strathblane Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 77.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Edward Middleton

    Will proved in 1940; of Chicago Cook County Illinois, blk.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)

Showing 3 of 204 records for Middleton in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

New Zealand55 records

55 records of the Middleton name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 45
  • Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 7
  • Other New Zealand records 3
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Beatrice Emma Middleton

    Died 1980, aged 56; buried at Ruru Lawn, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Hannah Elizabeth Middleton

    Buried in 1947 at Shortland Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 68.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Alfred Harry Middleton

    Died 1905, aged 48; buried at Omaka Cemetery, Marlborough.

    Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 55 records for Middleton in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Netherlands25 records

25 records of the Middleton name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 16
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 8
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 1
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Ralph Middleton

    Married in 1936 in 's-Gravenhage; lawyer.

    Open Archives, Haags Gemeentearchief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Ann Harriet Middleton

    Died 1970 in Baarn; born 1885.

    Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Cecil Arthur Middleton

    Married in 1924 in Amsterdam; "handelscorrespondent".

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 25 records for Middleton in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

France9 records

9 records of the Middleton name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Camelle Suzanne Middleton

    Born 1921 in Petit-Bourg; died 1995 in Petit-Bourg (Guadeloupe).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Paul William Middleton

    Born 1919 in Pointe-à-Pitre; died 1994 in Les Abymes (Guadeloupe).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 9 records for Middleton in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Middleton.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Middleton is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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