2000
#4,969
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,487
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.40
Rare Last name
Archie
Derived from the Old English name Archibald, meaning "genuine, bold, and brave."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,904 Americans carry the last name Archie. That puts it at #4,952 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 43,365 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Archie 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
7.9K
1 in 43,365
Census rank
#4,952
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,893 bearers of the surname Archie in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4952nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Archie, the largest self-reported group is Black at 71.0%. The next largest groups are White (17.7%) and Two or More Races (6.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Archie
The surname Archie is of Scottish origin, derived from the Gaelic personal name Archibald. The earliest recorded instances of this name can be traced back to the 12th century in Scotland.
Archibald is a compound name composed of the Germanic elements "aris" meaning "genuine" or "true" and "bald" meaning "bold" or "brave." It was initially popularized by the influential Archie family, who were landowners and nobles in the Scottish Lowlands during the Middle Ages.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Archie surname was William Archie, a Scottish landowner mentioned in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a historical document recording the names of Scottish nobles who swore fealty to King Edward I of England.
In the 14th century, the Archie surname appeared in the renowned Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, which documented financial transactions and land ownership records. This suggests that the Archie family held a prominent position in Scottish society during this period.
The Archie surname is also associated with the historic town of Archie in East Ayrshire, Scotland, which likely derived its name from the Archie family who once held lands in the area.
Notable individuals bearing the Archie surname throughout history include:
1. Sir William Archie (c. 1450-1520), a Scottish knight and landowner who served as a diplomat during the reigns of James IV and James V of Scotland.
2. Robert Archie (1590-1654), a Scottish minister and author who wrote extensively on theological subjects.
3. John Archie (1725-1801), a Scottish-American soldier and farmer who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Pennsylvania.
4. Alexander Archie (1805-1890), a Scottish-born American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio.
5. Sir Edward Archie (1851-1925), a British architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Royal Albert Hall.
The Archie surname has a rich history deeply rooted in Scottish culture and tradition, with its origins tracing back to the medieval era and bearing the legacy of a once influential noble family.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Archie
Among Census respondents with the surname Archie, the largest self-reported group is Black at 71.0%. The next largest groups are White (17.7%) and Two or More Races (6.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Archie 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 Archie surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American71.0% · 4,895
- White17.7% · 1,223
- Two or more races6.0% · 416
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 196
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 121
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 42
Timeline
Historical Census data for Archie
Archie 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
#4,990
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,035
+548 bearers (+8.4%)
Per 100,000 2.38
Rank movement Down 21 places
2020
#4,952
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,893
-142 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 2.31
Rank movement Up 38 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,969 | 6,487 | 2.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,990 | 7,035 | 2.38 | +548 bearers (+8.4%) | Down 21 places |
| 2020 | #4,952 | 6,893 | 2.31 | -142 bearers (-2.0%) | Up 38 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 Archie 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 | #4,990 | #4,952 | 0.8% |
| Count | 7,035 | 6,893 | -2.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.38 | 2.31 | -3.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Archie bearers went from 7,035 to 6,893 (-2.0% change). The surname moved up 38 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,990 to #4,952.
FAQ
Archie surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Archie?
Name Census estimates that about 7,904 living Americans carry the surname Archie. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 43,365 residents.
How common is Archie?
Archie ranks #4,952 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.31 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 6,893 people with the surname Archie. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,904), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.31 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 Archie.
Has Archie become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Archie went from 7,035 recorded bearers to 6,893. That is a decrease of 142 (-2.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #4,990 to #4,952.
What does the Census say about the background of Archie?
Among Census respondents with the surname Archie, the largest self-reported group is Black at 71.0%. The next largest groups are White (17.7%) and Two or More Races (6.0%). 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 Archie in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.0% (4,895 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Archie appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (71.0%), White (17.7%), Two or More Races (6.0%). 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 Archie (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 Archie mean?
Derived from the Old English name Archibald, meaning "genuine, bold, and brave." 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 Archie (2.31 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 share the surname Archie?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.