2000
#6,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,136
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.90
Rare Last name
Abram
A patronymic surname derived from the Hebrew personal name Abraham, meaning "father of many."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,007 Americans carry the last name Abram. That puts it at #6,257 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 57,059 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Abram surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Abram with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.0K
1 in 57,059
Census rank
#6,257
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,238 bearers of the surname Abram in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6257th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Abram, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.5%. The next largest groups are White (43.3%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Abram
The surname ABRAM originated in England and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Hebrew personal name 'Abraham', which means 'father of many' or 'father of multitudes'. The name was likely brought to England by Jewish settlers or adopted by Christians as a baptismal name.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname ABRAM can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275, where a Richard Abram is mentioned. The surname also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire in 1327, where a John Abram is listed.
The ABRAM surname may have originated from various place names in England, such as Abram in Lancashire or Abram in Buckinghamshire. These place names are believed to derive from the Old English words 'æt' (at) and 'bræm' (broom), referring to a location near a broom plant or a broom-covered area.
In the 16th century, a notable bearer of the ABRAM surname was Robert Abram, a Church of England clergyman who served as the Bishop of Waterford and Lismore in Ireland from 1564 to 1567.
Another historical figure with the ABRAM surname was John Abram (1585-1655), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Boston in Lincolnshire during the 17th century.
In the 18th century, Joseph Abram (1705-1769) was a prominent English lawyer and judge who served as the Chief Baron of the Exchequer from 1766 until his death.
During the 19th century, Edward Abram (1819-1888) was a British architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings in Manchester and Liverpool.
Another notable bearer of the ABRAM surname was William Abram (1857-1936), a Scottish architect who worked in the Arts and Crafts style and designed several churches and public buildings in Glasgow and the surrounding areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Abram
Among Census respondents with the surname Abram, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.5%. The next largest groups are White (43.3%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Abram bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Abram surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American45.5% · 2,382
- White43.3% · 2,270
- Two or more races5.4% · 281
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 216
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 61
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 28
Timeline
Historical Census data for Abram
Abram appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#6,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,514
+378 bearers (+7.4%)
Per 100,000 1.87
Rank movement Down 61 places
2020
#6,257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,238
-276 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 1.75
Rank movement Down 56 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,140 | 5,136 | 1.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,201 | 5,514 | 1.87 | +378 bearers (+7.4%) | Down 61 places |
| 2020 | #6,257 | 5,238 | 1.75 | -276 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 56 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Abram surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #6,201 | #6,257 | -0.9% |
| Count | 5,514 | 5,238 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.87 | 1.75 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Abram bearers went from 5,514 to 5,238 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 56 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,201 to #6,257.
FAQ
Abram surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Abram?
Name Census estimates that about 6,007 living Americans carry the surname Abram. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 57,059 residents.
How common is Abram?
Abram ranks #6,257 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.75 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,238 people with the surname Abram. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,007), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.75 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Abram.
Has Abram become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Abram went from 5,514 recorded bearers to 5,238. That is a decrease of 276 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,201 to #6,257.
What does the Census say about the background of Abram?
Among Census respondents with the surname Abram, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.5%. The next largest groups are White (43.3%) and Two or More Races (5.4%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Abram in the 2020 Census, accounting for 45.5% (2,382 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Abram appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (45.5%), White (43.3%), Two or More Races (5.4%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Abram (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Abram mean?
A patronymic surname derived from the Hebrew personal name Abraham, meaning "father of many." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Abram (1.75 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Abram?
You can see how many Americans have the surname Abram on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.