2010
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Bobrov
Derived from the Russian word for "beaver", likely referring to someone who hunted beavers.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Bobrov. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bobrov 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.
Bearers in the US
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Bobrov in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bobrov, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bobrov
The surname Bobrov is of Russian origin and dates back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Russian word "bobr," meaning "beaver," and was likely initially bestowed upon someone who trapped or worked with beavers.
The name is believed to have originated in the northern regions of Russia, where beaver populations were once abundant and their pelts were a valuable commodity. The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in historical documents from the Arkhangelsk and Vologda regions.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Ivan Bobrov, a fur trader and merchant who lived in the late 16th century and was involved in the thriving trade between Russia and England during the reign of Ivan the Terrible.
In the 17th century, the Bobrov family established themselves as prominent landowners and noblemen in the Yaroslavl and Kostroma regions. Notably, Andrei Bobrov (1628-1690) was a member of the Boyar Duma, the highest advisory council to the Tsar, during the reign of Alexis I.
The surname Bobrov has also been associated with several notable figures throughout Russian history. One such individual was Semyon Bobrov (1765-1810), a military officer who served under Alexander Suvorov and was awarded the Order of St. George for his bravery during the Russo-Turkish Wars.
Another notable bearer of the name was Mikhail Bobrov (1923-1983), a Soviet ice hockey player and coach who led the Soviet national team to numerous World Championship and Olympic victories during the 1950s and 1960s.
In the realm of literature, the surname is associated with Nikolai Bobrov (1890-1938), a Russian poet and playwright who was part of the Acmeist movement and whose works were influenced by the aesthetics of classical antiquity.
While the name Bobrov is predominantly found in Russia, it has also been carried by individuals of Russian descent in other parts of the world, particularly in countries with significant Russian diaspora communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bobrov
Among Census respondents with the surname Bobrov, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Bobrov 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 Bobrov surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.2% · 100
- Two or more races3.8% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bobrov
Bobrov appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-3 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 1,457 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 1,457 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 Bobrov 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 | #151,532 | #152,989 | -1.0% |
| Count | 108 | 105 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -12.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bobrov bearers went from 108 to 105 (-2.8% change). The surname moved down 1,457 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #152,989.
FAQ
Bobrov surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bobrov?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Bobrov. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Bobrov?
Bobrov ranks #152,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 105 people with the surname Bobrov. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Bobrov.
Has Bobrov become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bobrov went from 108 recorded bearers to 105. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #151,532 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Bobrov?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bobrov, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Bobrov in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.2% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bobrov appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.2%), Two or More Races (3.8%), Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Bobrov (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 Bobrov mean?
Derived from the Russian word for "beaver", likely referring to someone who hunted beavers. 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 Bobrov (0.04 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 Bobrov?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.