2000
#4,854
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,634
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.46
Rare Last name
Barringer
An occupational surname referring to the bearer being a maker or seller of barrels or casks.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,693 Americans carry the last name Barringer. That puts it at #5,719 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.95 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,211 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Barringer 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 Barringer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.7K
1 in 51,211
Census rank
#5,719
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,837 bearers of the surname Barringer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.95 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5719th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Barringer, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.1%. The next largest groups are Black (11.7%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Barringer
The surname Barringer has its origins in Germany, where it first appeared in the 13th century. The name is derived from the Old German words "baren" meaning to bear or carry, and "ringen" meaning to wrestle or struggle. This suggests the name may have originally referred to someone who transported goods or engaged in physical labor.
One of the earliest known references to the Barringer name appears in a 14th-century manuscript from the town of Mainz, where a "Johannes Barringer" is listed as a merchant. The name also appears in records from the nearby town of Frankfurt, with a "Hans Barringer" recorded as a blacksmith in 1412.
By the 16th century, the Barringer name had spread to other parts of Germany, as well as neighboring regions such as Switzerland and Austria. In 1522, a "Peter Barringer" from the town of Augsburg is listed as a participant in the German Peasants' War, a major revolt against the ruling elite.
As the Barringer family expanded and migrated, variations in spelling emerged, including Baringer, Barenger, and Bäringer. One notable figure was Johann Baringer (1532-1605), a Lutheran theologian and professor at the University of Tübingen.
In the 17th century, members of the Barringer family began to settle in the New World, with records showing a "Hans Barringer" arriving in Pennsylvania in 1683 as part of the Germantown settlement. Another early American Barringer was Daniel Barringer (1660-1737), a Quaker who settled in New Jersey and served as a member of the colonial assembly.
Other notable individuals with the Barringer surname include Paul Barringer (1778-1835), a U.S. Congressman from North Carolina, and Emily Barringer (1876-1961), an American educator and philanthropist who founded the Barringer School in New Jersey.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Barringer
Among Census respondents with the surname Barringer, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.1%. The next largest groups are Black (11.7%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Barringer 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 Barringer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.1% · 4,736
- Black or African American11.7% · 682
- Two or more races3.4% · 201
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 172
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Barringer
Barringer 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
#5,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,964
+330 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 2.36
Rank movement Down 183 places
2020
#5,719
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,837
-1,127 bearers (-16.2%)
Per 100,000 1.95
Rank movement Down 682 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,854 | 6,634 | 2.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,037 | 6,964 | 2.36 | +330 bearers (+5.0%) | Down 183 places |
| 2020 | #5,719 | 5,837 | 1.95 | -1,127 bearers (-16.2%) | Down 682 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 Barringer 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 | #5,037 | #5,719 | -13.5% |
| Count | 6,964 | 5,837 | -16.2% |
| Per 100K | 2.36 | 1.95 | -17.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Barringer bearers went from 6,964 to 5,837 (-16.2% change). The surname moved down 682 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,037 to #5,719.
FAQ
Barringer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Barringer?
Name Census estimates that about 6,693 living Americans carry the surname Barringer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,211 residents.
How common is Barringer?
Barringer ranks #5,719 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.95 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,837 people with the surname Barringer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,693), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.95 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.95 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Barringer.
Has Barringer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Barringer went from 6,964 recorded bearers to 5,837. That is a decrease of 1,127 (-16.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,037 to #5,719.
What does the Census say about the background of Barringer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Barringer, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.1%. The next largest groups are Black (11.7%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Barringer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.1% (4,736 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Barringer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.1%), Black (11.7%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Barringer (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 Barringer mean?
An occupational surname referring to the bearer being a maker or seller of barrels or casks. 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 Barringer (1.95 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 have the surname Barringer?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.