2010
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Amm
A surname possibly derived from the Middle Low German word "amme" meaning nurse or wet-nurse.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Amm. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Amm 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.
Bearers in the US
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Amm in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Amm, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Amm
The surname "AMM" has its origins in Germany, dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "amm," which referred to a person who held an administrative position or a steward. The name was initially concentrated in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony.
During the Middle Ages, the name "AMM" appeared in various historical records and manuscripts, such as the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of documents from the Saxon region. One notable example is the mention of a certain Henricus Amm in a charter from the year 1254.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 13th century. For instance, a document from 1287 mentions a place called "Ammendorf," which likely took its name from an individual with the surname Amm. Additionally, there are records of a village called "Ammenhausen" in Bavaria, which may have been named after a family bearing the Amm name.
Throughout history, several individuals with the surname Amm have left their mark. One notable figure was Johannes Amm, a German astronomer and mathematician born in 1536 in Nuremberg. He made significant contributions to the study of comets and published works on celestial mechanics.
Another prominent person with this surname was Johann Amm, a German botanist and naturalist born in 1699 in Nuremberg. He is best known for his influential work "Stirpium Rariorum in Imperio Rutheno Sponte Provenientium Icones et Descriptiones," which cataloged and described rare plant species found in the Russian Empire.
In the realm of literature, Karl Amm, a German poet and writer born in 1809 in Ansbach, gained recognition for his works, including the novel "Der Pfarrer von Dorfelden" (The Vicar of Dorfelden).
Johann Friedrich Amm, born in 1751 in Nuremberg, was a renowned engraver and artist known for his intricate copper engravings depicting landscapes and architectural subjects.
Lastly, one cannot overlook the contributions of Johann Christoph Amm, a German theologian and philosopher born in 1673 in Nuremberg. He wrote extensively on religious and philosophical topics, and his works had a significant impact on the intellectual discourse of his time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Amm
Among Census respondents with the surname Amm, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Amm 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 Amm surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.5% · 96
- Black or African American5.4% · 6
- Two or more races3.6% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Amm
Amm appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 730 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Up 730 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 Amm 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 | #149,395 | #148,665 | 0.5% |
| Count | 110 | 111 | 0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Amm bearers went from 110 to 111 (+0.9% change). The surname moved up 730 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #148,665.
FAQ
Amm surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Amm?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Amm. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Amm?
Amm ranks #148,665 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 111 people with the surname Amm. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Amm.
Has Amm become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Amm went from 110 recorded bearers to 111. That is an increase of 1 (+0.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #149,395 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Amm?
Among Census respondents with the surname Amm, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Amm in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.5% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Amm appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.5%), Black (5.4%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Amm (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 Amm mean?
A surname possibly derived from the Middle Low German word "amme" meaning nurse or wet-nurse. 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 Amm (0.04 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 are called Amm?
Find out how many people have the last name Amm on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.