2000
#738
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 42,432
First available Census row
Per 100,000 15.73
Uncommon Last name
Barr
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a barrier, gate, or barred entranceway.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 49,101 Americans carry the last name Barr. That puts it at #785 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 14.33 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 6,981 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Barr 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 Barr with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
49K
1 in 6,981
Census rank
#785
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
14.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
43K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 42,818 bearers of the surname Barr in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 14.33 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 785th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Barr, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.6%. The next largest groups are Black (11.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Barr
The surname Barr is of Scottish origin, deriving from the Gaelic word 'bàrr' meaning 'summit' or 'height'. It is believed to have originated as a topographic name, given to someone who lived on or near a hill or elevated land.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Barr can be found in the late 13th century. One of the earliest documented bearers was John de Barre, who was mentioned in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a historical record of Scottish landowners who swore fealty to King Edward I of England.
In the 14th century, the name Barr appeared in various spellings, such as de Barre, de Barr, and Barre, reflecting the fluid nature of surnames in medieval times. One notable bearer from this period was Robert de Barre, a Scottish knight who fought alongside Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence.
The surname Barr has also been associated with several place names in Scotland, including Barr in Ayrshire and Barr in Renfrewshire. These locations likely contributed to the spread and adoption of the name in their respective regions.
Throughout history, the Barr surname has been borne by several notable individuals, such as Robert Barr (1850-1912), a Scottish-Canadian author known for his detective fiction; James Barr (1862-1949), a Scottish-American golfer and one of the pioneers of professional golf; and Roseanne Barr (born 1952), an American comedian and actress.
Other notable bearers of the Barr surname include John Barr (1809-1889), a Scottish minister and author; Amelia Edith Huddleston Barr (1831-1919), an American novelist and educator; and Stringfellow Barr (1897-1982), an American educator and writer.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Barr
Among Census respondents with the surname Barr, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.6%. The next largest groups are Black (11.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Barr 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 Barr surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.6% · 34,064
- Black or African American11.5% · 4,940
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 1,552
- Two or more races3.5% · 1,514
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 440
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 308
Timeline
Historical Census data for Barr
Barr 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
#781
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 44,130
+1,698 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 14.96
Rank movement Down 43 places
2020
#785
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 42,818
-1,312 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 14.33
Rank movement Down 4 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #738 | 42,432 | 15.73 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #781 | 44,130 | 14.96 | +1,698 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 43 places |
| 2020 | #785 | 42,818 | 14.33 | -1,312 bearers (-3.0%) | Down 4 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 Barr 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 | #781 | #785 | -0.5% |
| Count | 44,130 | 42,818 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 14.96 | 14.33 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Barr bearers went from 44,130 to 42,818 (-3.0% change). The surname moved down 4 positions in the national ranking, going from #781 to #785.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Barr
FAQ
Barr surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Barr?
Name Census estimates that about 49,101 living Americans carry the surname Barr. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 6,981 residents.
How common is Barr?
Barr ranks #785 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 14.33 per 100,000 residents, which is about 14 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 42,818 people with the surname Barr. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (49,101), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 14.33 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 14.33 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 14 of them to have the surname Barr.
Has Barr become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Barr went from 44,130 recorded bearers to 42,818. That is a decrease of 1,312 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #781 to #785.
What does the Census say about the background of Barr?
Among Census respondents with the surname Barr, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.6%. The next largest groups are Black (11.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Barr in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.6% (34,064 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Barr appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.6%), Black (11.5%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Barr (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 Barr mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a barrier, gate, or barred entranceway. 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 Barr (14.33 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 are called Barr?
Find out how many people have the surname Barr on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.