Find out how popular the last name Arms is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Arms.

Arms, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Arms surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Arms in America

Arms is the 8541st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Arms surname appeared 3,854 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Arms.

We can also compare 2010 data for Arms to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Arms

The surname Arms originates from England and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old English word "aerm," meaning "arm" or "branch." The name likely referred to someone who lived near an area with a distinctive arm-shaped feature or a person with a particularly muscular arm.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Huntingdonshire, dating back to 1273, where a person named William le Armes is mentioned. The use of the prefix "le" suggests that the name was initially a descriptive nickname before becoming a hereditary surname.

In the 14th century, the surname appeared in various forms, such as Armes, Armes, and Armys, reflecting the variations in spelling and pronunciation common during that period. The name was particularly prevalent in the counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, and Suffolk.

A notable early bearer of the surname was Thomas Armes, a prominent merchant and alderman of the City of London, who lived in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Sir William Armeyn or Armyne, a knight who served as Sheriff of Yorkshire in 1417.

During the 16th century, the surname Arms began to appear in several English parish records. For example, in 1543, the baptism of John Arms was recorded in the parish of St. Michael's in Coventry. In 1598, the marriage of Johanne Arms and William Tayler was documented in the parish of St. Mary's in Lambeth, Surrey.

In the 17th century, the surname was associated with several notable individuals, including Thomas Arms (1604-1665), a Puritan minister and author who served as the rector of Leigh in Essex. Another prominent bearer of the name was William Armes (1618-1663), a British East India Company merchant and writer who published accounts of his travels in India.

Throughout history, the surname Arms has been linked to various place names, such as Armshill in Bedfordshire and Armston in Derbyshire, suggesting that some families may have taken their names from these locations.

Other notable individuals with the surname Arms include:

1. John Arms (1785-1850), an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.
2. George Arms (1830-1892), an American businessman and politician who served as the 34th Governor of Massachusetts.
3. Herbert Arms (1865-1940), an American architect known for his work in the Prairie School style.
4. William Arms (1918-2005), an American artist and illustrator renowned for his work in children's literature.
5. Hiram Arms (1876-1963), an American inventor and engineer best known for his contributions to the development of the helicopter.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Arms

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Arms.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Arms was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Arms has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Arms was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Arms, please contact us.

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