2000
#13,567
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,053
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.76
Rare Last name
Baggs
An English occupational surname for a maker or carrier of bags.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,079 Americans carry the last name Baggs. That puts it at #15,535 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 164,865 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Baggs 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 Baggs with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.1K
1 in 164,865
Census rank
#15,535
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,813 bearers of the surname Baggs in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15535th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Baggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Hispanic (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Baggs
The surname Baggs is of English origin, derived from the Old English word 'bag' or 'bagge', meaning a bag or pouch. It likely originated as an occupational name for a bag maker or someone who carried bags, such as a tradesman or merchant.
The earliest known records of the name Baggs date back to the late 13th century in counties like Devon, Dorset, and Somerset in southwest England. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 include references to individuals with the surname Baggs, spelled as 'Bagge'.
During the medieval period, the name Baggs appeared in various forms, including Bagge, Bagg, and Baggis. It was often associated with place names like Baggridge in Gloucestershire and Bagborough in Somerset, reflecting the geographic origins of different branches of the Baggs family.
One notable early bearer of the name was John Baggs, a prominent merchant from Bristol who lived in the 15th century. He is mentioned in historical records from the city, highlighting the Baggs family's involvement in trade and commerce.
In the 16th century, the name Baggs can be found in the parish records of several English counties, indicating its widespread distribution. For instance, the baptism of William Baggs was recorded in the parish of Bere Regis, Dorset, in 1582.
Another significant figure was Sir Edward Baggs (1617-1683), a wealthy landowner and member of Parliament for Chippenham in Wiltshire during the reign of King Charles II. He played a role in the Restoration of the monarchy after the English Civil War.
The Baggs family also had connections to the American colonies. One of the earliest known immigrants with the surname was Richard Baggs, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 and became a prominent figure in the colony's early history.
Throughout the centuries, various branches of the Baggs family spread across England and beyond, with some members achieving notable positions in fields such as politics, business, and academia. For example, John Baggs (1784-1860) was a renowned mathematician and astronomer from Gloucestershire, while Thomas Baggs (1808-1885) was a successful industrialist and philanthropist from Staffordshire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Baggs
Among Census respondents with the surname Baggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Hispanic (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Baggs 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 Baggs surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.3% · 1,455
- Black or African American9.9% · 180
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 69
- Two or more races3.8% · 69
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 21
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Baggs
Baggs 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
#14,299
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,093
+40 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 732 places
2020
#15,535
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,813
-280 bearers (-13.4%)
Per 100,000 0.61
Rank movement Down 1,236 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,567 | 2,053 | 0.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,299 | 2,093 | 0.71 | +40 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 732 places |
| 2020 | #15,535 | 1,813 | 0.61 | -280 bearers (-13.4%) | Down 1,236 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 Baggs 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 | #14,299 | #15,535 | -8.6% |
| Count | 2,093 | 1,813 | -13.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.71 | 0.61 | -14.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Baggs bearers went from 2,093 to 1,813 (-13.4% change). The surname moved down 1,236 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,299 to #15,535.
FAQ
Baggs surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Baggs?
Name Census estimates that about 2,079 living Americans carry the surname Baggs. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 164,865 residents.
How common is Baggs?
Baggs ranks #15,535 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.61 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 1,813 people with the surname Baggs. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,079), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.61 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 Baggs.
Has Baggs become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Baggs went from 2,093 recorded bearers to 1,813. That is a decrease of 280 (-13.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,299 to #15,535.
What does the Census say about the background of Baggs?
Among Census respondents with the surname Baggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Baggs in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.3% (1,455 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Baggs appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.3%), Black (9.9%), Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Baggs (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 Baggs mean?
An English occupational surname for a maker or carrier of bags. 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 Baggs (0.61 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 Baggs?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.