2000
#5,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,872
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.18
Rare Last name
Book
An occupational surname referring to a scribe, secretary, or one who kept financial records and accounts.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,338 Americans carry the last name Book. That puts it at #5,996 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.85 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 54,079 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Book 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 Book with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.3K
1 in 54,079
Census rank
#5,996
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,527 bearers of the surname Book in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.85 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5996th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Book, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Book
The surname BOOK is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "boc," which means a written document or book. It is believed to have originated as an occupational name for a scribe, scholar, or someone who was involved in the writing or selling of books during the medieval period.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname BOOK can be traced back to the late 12th century in various regions of England, such as Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, and Somerset. One of the earliest known bearers of this name was Roger le Boc, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1191.
In the 13th century, the surname BOOK was found in several historical records, including the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which listed individuals such as Reginald Boc in Oxfordshire and William le Boc in Somerset. The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners in England compiled by order of William the Conqueror in 1086, did not contain any direct references to the surname BOOK, but it did mention several place names that may have influenced the development of this surname, such as Bocland and Bockenhale.
During the 14th and 15th centuries, the surname BOOK continued to appear in various records across England. Notable individuals from this period include John Boke, a wealthy merchant from Bristol who lived in the late 14th century, and Robert Booke, a member of the Guild of St. George in Norwich in the early 15th century.
In the 16th century, one of the most famous bearers of the surname BOOK was John Booke (c. 1510-1550), an English Protestant reformer and writer who was executed for his religious beliefs during the reign of Queen Mary I. Another notable figure from this period was Barnabe Barnes (1569-1609), an English poet and writer who published several works under the pseudonym Barnabe Book.
As the centuries progressed, the surname BOOK spread across various regions of England and beyond. Other notable individuals with this surname include George Henry Book (1829-1919), a British architect and surveyor who worked on several notable projects in London, and Winfield Scott Book (1863-1952), an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Book Cadillac Hotel in Detroit.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Book
Among Census respondents with the surname Book, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Book 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 Book surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 5,061
- Two or more races3.0% · 164
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 146
- Black or African American1.4% · 75
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 68
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Book
Book 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
#5,471
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,356
+484 bearers (+8.2%)
Per 100,000 2.15
Rank movement Down 22 places
2020
#5,996
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,527
-829 bearers (-13.0%)
Per 100,000 1.85
Rank movement Down 525 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,449 | 5,872 | 2.18 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,471 | 6,356 | 2.15 | +484 bearers (+8.2%) | Down 22 places |
| 2020 | #5,996 | 5,527 | 1.85 | -829 bearers (-13.0%) | Down 525 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 Book 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 | #5,471 | #5,996 | -9.6% |
| Count | 6,356 | 5,527 | -13.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.15 | 1.85 | -14.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Book bearers went from 6,356 to 5,527 (-13.0% change). The surname moved down 525 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,471 to #5,996.
FAQ
Book surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Book?
Name Census estimates that about 6,338 living Americans carry the surname Book. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 54,079 residents.
How common is Book?
Book ranks #5,996 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.85 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 5,527 people with the surname Book. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,338), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.85 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.85 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 Book.
Has Book become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Book went from 6,356 recorded bearers to 5,527. That is a decrease of 829 (-13.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,471 to #5,996.
What does the Census say about the background of Book?
Among Census respondents with the surname Book, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Book in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (5,061 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Book appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Two or More Races (3.0%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Book (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 Book mean?
An occupational surname referring to a scribe, secretary, or one who kept financial records and accounts. 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 Book (1.85 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 last name Book?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Book, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.