2000
#4,250
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,711
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.86
Rare Last name
Armour
An occupational surname for one who made armor or was an armorer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,108 Americans carry the last name Armour. That puts it at #4,323 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.66 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 37,632 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Armour 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 Armour with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.1K
1 in 37,632
Census rank
#4,323
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,943 bearers of the surname Armour in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.66 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4323rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Armour, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.2%. The next largest groups are Black (32.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Armour
The surname Armour is of English and Scottish origin, derived from the Old French word "armure" meaning armor or protective covering. It is believed to have originated as an occupational name for those who made or sold armor, or for soldiers who wore armor in battle.
The earliest recorded use of the name dates back to the late 12th century in England. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was William le Armurer, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1195. The name was also found in Scotland in the 13th century, with a Robert le Armurer appearing in the Ragman Rolls of 1296.
In the 14th century, the surname was often spelled as Armurer or Armourer, reflecting its occupational origins. The variant spelling Armour became more common in the 16th century, as the name evolved from its occupational roots to become a hereditary surname.
Notable historical figures with the surname Armour include Sir John Armour (1568-1650), a Scottish merchant and politician who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh. Another notable bearer was William Armour (1730-1783), a Scottish poet and writer who was a contemporary of Robert Burns.
In England, the surname Armour was particularly prevalent in the counties of Lancashire, Yorkshire, and Staffordshire. In Scotland, it was found in the regions of Ayrshire, Lanarkshire, and Renfrewshire.
Other notable individuals with the surname Armour throughout history include:
1. Jonathan Armour (1750-1835), a Scottish-American merchant and businessman who founded the Armour Family business dynasty.
2. Philip Armour (1832-1901), an American industrialist and founder of the Armour Meat Packing Company.
3. Norman Armour (1887-1982), a British politician and Member of Parliament for Sedgefield.
4. Reginald Armour (1906-1976), a British actor and playwright known for his work in the theatre.
5. Richard Armour (1906-1989), an American author and humorist, best known for his satirical writings on topics such as poetry and grammar.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Armour
Among Census respondents with the surname Armour, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.2%. The next largest groups are Black (32.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Armour 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 Armour surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White58.2% · 4,622
- Black or African American32.6% · 2,587
- Two or more races4.6% · 368
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 249
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 61
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 56
Timeline
Historical Census data for Armour
Armour 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
#4,366
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,139
+428 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 2.76
Rank movement Down 116 places
2020
#4,323
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,943
-196 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 2.66
Rank movement Up 43 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,250 | 7,711 | 2.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,366 | 8,139 | 2.76 | +428 bearers (+5.6%) | Down 116 places |
| 2020 | #4,323 | 7,943 | 2.66 | -196 bearers (-2.4%) | Up 43 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 Armour 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 | #4,366 | #4,323 | 1.0% |
| Count | 8,139 | 7,943 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.76 | 2.66 | -3.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Armour bearers went from 8,139 to 7,943 (-2.4% change). The surname moved up 43 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,366 to #4,323.
FAQ
Armour surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Armour?
Name Census estimates that about 9,108 living Americans carry the surname Armour. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 37,632 residents.
How common is Armour?
Armour ranks #4,323 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.66 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,943 people with the surname Armour. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,108), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.66 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.66 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Armour.
Has Armour become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Armour went from 8,139 recorded bearers to 7,943. That is a decrease of 196 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #4,366 to #4,323.
What does the Census say about the background of Armour?
Among Census respondents with the surname Armour, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.2%. The next largest groups are Black (32.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Armour in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.2% (4,622 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Armour appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (58.2%), Black (32.6%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Armour (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 Armour mean?
An occupational surname for one who made armor or was an armorer. 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 Armour (2.66 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 Americans have the surname Armour?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.