2000
#7,917
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,877
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.44
Rare Last name
Arms
An English occupational surname referring to a maker of armor or weapons.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,070 Americans carry the last name Arms. That puts it at #8,860 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 84,215 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Arms 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 Arms with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.1K
1 in 84,215
Census rank
#8,860
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,549 bearers of the surname Arms in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8860th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Arms, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Arms
Among Census respondents with the surname Arms, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Arms 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 Arms surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.3% · 2,992
- Black or African American7.4% · 263
- Two or more races4.0% · 143
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 107
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 23
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Arms
Arms 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
#8,541
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,854
-23 bearers (-0.6%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Down 624 places
2020
#8,860
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,549
-305 bearers (-7.9%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Down 319 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,917 | 3,877 | 1.44 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,541 | 3,854 | 1.31 | -23 bearers (-0.6%) | Down 624 places |
| 2020 | #8,860 | 3,549 | 1.19 | -305 bearers (-7.9%) | Down 319 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 Arms 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 | #8,541 | #8,860 | -3.7% |
| Count | 3,854 | 3,549 | -7.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.31 | 1.19 | -9.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Arms bearers went from 3,854 to 3,549 (-7.9% change). The surname moved down 319 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,541 to #8,860.
FAQ
Arms surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Arms?
Name Census estimates that about 4,070 living Americans carry the surname Arms. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 84,215 residents.
How common is Arms?
Arms ranks #8,860 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.19 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,549 people with the surname Arms. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,070), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.19 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Arms.
Has Arms become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Arms went from 3,854 recorded bearers to 3,549. That is a decrease of 305 (-7.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,541 to #8,860.
What does the Census say about the background of Arms?
Among Census respondents with the surname Arms, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Arms in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.3% (2,992 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Arms appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.3%), Black (7.4%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Arms (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 Arms mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a maker of armor or weapons. 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 Arms (1.19 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 Arms?
Want to know how common the surname Arms is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.