2000
#2,704
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,209
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.53
Uncommon Last name
Adam
A surname derived from the biblical figure Adam, the first man created by God in Abrahamic religions.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 17,743 Americans carry the last name Adam. That puts it at #2,298 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 19,318 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Adam 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 Adam with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
18K
1 in 19,318
Census rank
#2,298
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,473 bearers of the surname Adam in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2298th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Adam, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.4%. The next largest groups are Black (26.5%) and Hispanic (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Adam
The surname Adam originated in England and is believed to have been derived from the given name Adam, which has Hebrew roots meaning "man" or "earth." The earliest recorded use of the surname can be traced back to the late 12th century in Norfolk, England.
One of the earliest known references to the surname Adam can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1195, where a Walter Adam is mentioned. The name also appeared in the Curia Regis Rolls of Berkshire in 1208, with a record of a William Adam.
The surname Adam is thought to have been initially used as a descriptive name, referring to the first man in the biblical story of creation. Over time, it evolved into a hereditary surname passed down from generation to generation.
In the 13th century, the surname Adam was found in various parts of England, including Yorkshire, where a John Adam was recorded in the Yorkshire Assize Rolls of 1219. The name was also present in Oxfordshire, with a record of a Roger Adam in the Oxfordshire Hundred Rolls of 1273.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Adam was Sir John Adam, a Scottish knight who lived in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. He fought alongside William Wallace during the Scottish Wars of Independence against England.
Another notable figure was Clement Adam, a 16th-century English clergyman and academic who served as the President of Magdalen College, Oxford, from 1512 to 1520.
In the 17th century, Robert Adam, a Scottish architect and designer, made significant contributions to the neoclassical style. He was born in 1728 and is best known for his work on buildings such as the Adelphi Terrace in London and the University of Edinburgh's Old College.
The 18th century saw the rise of John Adam, a Scottish philosopher and author who lived from 1728 to 1792. He is known for his works on moral philosophy and political economy.
In the 19th century, Juliette Adam, a French writer and feminist, made her mark. Born in 1836, she founded the influential magazine La Nouvelle Revue and advocated for women's rights and education.
Throughout history, the surname Adam has been found in various spellings, including Adame, Adem, and Adeyn, reflecting regional variations and linguistic influences. However, the modern spelling of Adam has become the most commonly recognized form.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Adam
Among Census respondents with the surname Adam, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.4%. The next largest groups are Black (26.5%) and Hispanic (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Adam 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 Adam surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White62.4% · 9,658
- Black or African American26.5% · 4,094
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 639
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.7% · 567
- Two or more races3.1% · 477
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 38
Timeline
Historical Census data for Adam
Adam 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
#2,654
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,574
+1,365 bearers (+11.2%)
Per 100,000 4.60
Rank movement Up 50 places
2020
#2,298
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,473
+1,899 bearers (+14.0%)
Per 100,000 5.18
Rank movement Up 356 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,704 | 12,209 | 4.53 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,654 | 13,574 | 4.60 | +1,365 bearers (+11.2%) | Up 50 places |
| 2020 | #2,298 | 15,473 | 5.18 | +1,899 bearers (+14.0%) | Up 356 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 Adam 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 | #2,654 | #2,298 | 13.4% |
| Count | 13,574 | 15,473 | 14.0% |
| Per 100K | 4.60 | 5.18 | 12.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Adam bearers went from 13,574 to 15,473 (+14.0% change). The surname moved up 356 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,654 to #2,298.
FAQ
Adam surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Adam?
Name Census estimates that about 17,743 living Americans carry the surname Adam. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 19,318 residents.
How common is Adam?
Adam ranks #2,298 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,473 people with the surname Adam. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (17,743), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Adam.
Has Adam become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Adam went from 13,574 recorded bearers to 15,473. That is an increase of 1,899 (+14.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #2,654 to #2,298.
What does the Census say about the background of Adam?
Among Census respondents with the surname Adam, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.4%. The next largest groups are Black (26.5%) and Hispanic (4.1%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Adam in the 2020 Census, accounting for 62.4% (9,658 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Adam appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (62.4%), Black (26.5%), Hispanic (4.1%). 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 Adam (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 Adam mean?
A surname derived from the biblical figure Adam, the first man created by God in Abrahamic religions. 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 Adam (5.18 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 common is the surname Adam?
Find out how many people are called Adam on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.