2000
#8,748
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,458
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.28
Rare Last name
Boddie
Derived from a place name meaning "one who lived by a body of water" in Middle English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,878 Americans carry the last name Boddie. That puts it at #9,245 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.13 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 88,384 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Boddie 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 Boddie with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.9K
1 in 88,384
Census rank
#9,245
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,382 bearers of the surname Boddie in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.13 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9245th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Boddie, the largest self-reported group is Black at 70.0%. The next largest groups are White (20.9%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Boddie
The surname Boddie is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "boddi," which means a small body or stump. The name is believed to have originated in the counties of Sussex and Hampshire in southern England during the early medieval period, around the 11th or 12th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Sussex, dating back to 1195, which mentions a William Boddie as a landowner. The surname also appears in the Hundred Rolls of Sussex from 1273, referring to a John Boddie.
The name Boddie is thought to be a topographic surname, derived from a physical feature or location associated with a small body or stump, such as a dwelling near a certain tree stump or a small hill. It is possible that the name's origins are related to a place name that has since been lost or altered over time.
In the 14th century, the surname Boddie appeared in various spellings, including Bodie, Boddy, and Bodyee, reflecting the regional variations and phonetic interpretations of the name. One notable individual from this period was John Bodie, a merchant from Bristol, who lived in the late 1300s.
During the 16th century, the Boddie surname gained prominence in the county of Sussex, with records indicating several families bearing this name in the area. One notable figure was William Boddie, a landowner and magistrate who lived in the village of Bodiam, Sussex, in the late 1500s.
Another notable individual with the surname Boddie was Sir Thomas Boddie, a prominent English naval commander who served during the reign of King Charles I in the 17th century. He was born in 1610 and played a significant role in the English Civil War, commanding a fleet of ships for the Royalist cause.
In the 18th century, the Boddie surname spread to other parts of England, with records showing families bearing this name in counties such as Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, and Devon. One noteworthy figure from this period was John Boddie, a successful merchant and landowner from Bristol, who lived from 1720 to 1792.
As the name Boddie continued to evolve, it also found its way to other parts of the world, particularly through British colonization and migration. In the 19th century, there were notable individuals with the surname Boddie in countries like the United States and Canada, reflecting the spread of the name beyond its English roots.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Boddie
Among Census respondents with the surname Boddie, the largest self-reported group is Black at 70.0%. The next largest groups are White (20.9%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Boddie 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 Boddie surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American70.0% · 2,366
- White20.9% · 707
- Two or more races5.6% · 190
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 95
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Boddie
Boddie 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
#8,841
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,706
+248 bearers (+7.2%)
Per 100,000 1.26
Rank movement Down 93 places
2020
#9,245
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,382
-324 bearers (-8.7%)
Per 100,000 1.13
Rank movement Down 404 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,748 | 3,458 | 1.28 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,841 | 3,706 | 1.26 | +248 bearers (+7.2%) | Down 93 places |
| 2020 | #9,245 | 3,382 | 1.13 | -324 bearers (-8.7%) | Down 404 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 Boddie 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 | #8,841 | #9,245 | -4.6% |
| Count | 3,706 | 3,382 | -8.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.26 | 1.13 | -10.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Boddie bearers went from 3,706 to 3,382 (-8.7% change). The surname moved down 404 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,841 to #9,245.
FAQ
Boddie surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Boddie?
Name Census estimates that about 3,878 living Americans carry the surname Boddie. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 88,384 residents.
How common is Boddie?
Boddie ranks #9,245 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.13 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 3,382 people with the surname Boddie. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,878), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.13 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.13 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 Boddie.
Has Boddie become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Boddie went from 3,706 recorded bearers to 3,382. That is a decrease of 324 (-8.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,841 to #9,245.
What does the Census say about the background of Boddie?
Among Census respondents with the surname Boddie, the largest self-reported group is Black at 70.0%. The next largest groups are White (20.9%) and Two or More Races (5.6%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Boddie in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.0% (2,366 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Boddie appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (70.0%), White (20.9%), Two or More Races (5.6%). 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 Boddie (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 Boddie mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "one who lived by a body of water" in Middle English. 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 Boddie (1.13 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 Boddie?
Find out how common the surname Boddie is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.