2000
#3,973
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,215
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.05
Rare Last name
Boothe
An occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of boots or a nickname for someone who wore boots.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,822 Americans carry the last name Boothe. That puts it at #4,021 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.87 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 34,897 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Boothe 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 Boothe with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.8K
1 in 34,897
Census rank
#4,021
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,565 bearers of the surname Boothe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.87 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4021st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Boothe, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.0%. The next largest groups are Black (17.1%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Boothe
The surname Boothe has its origins in England and is an occupational name for someone who worked in a small hut or booth, such as a tradesman or merchant. It is derived from the Old English word "buth," meaning a temporary shelter or dwelling.
The earliest recorded instance of the surname Boothe can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Bude" in Yorkshire. This indicates that the name was in use by the late 11th century, likely among those involved in trade or markets.
During the medieval period, the name was commonly spelled as "Bothe" or "Bothey," reflecting the changing pronunciation over time. The modern spelling of "Boothe" became more standardized in the 16th and 17th centuries.
One notable early bearer of the name was Sir Robert Boothe, a 14th-century English soldier and landowner from Cheshire, born around 1330. He served as a knight under Edward III during the Hundred Years' War and was present at the famous Battle of Crécy in 1346.
Another prominent figure was Humphrey Boothe, a 15th-century English merchant and philanthropist from Nottinghamshire, born around 1420. He made his fortune through trade and donated generously to various charitable causes, including the founding of a grammar school in his hometown.
In the 16th century, the name was associated with the Boothe family of Cheshire, who held significant landholdings and political influence in the region. Sir George Boothe, born around 1520, was a member of this family and served as a Member of Parliament during the reign of Elizabeth I.
The surname Boothe also had connections to the early settlement of America. One notable figure was Richard Boothe, born in England around 1610, who emigrated to Virginia in the 1630s and became a successful plantation owner and merchant.
In the 18th century, John Boothe, born in Yorkshire around 1720, was a prominent English architect and surveyor known for his work on various public buildings and estates in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the surname Boothe, which has its roots in the occupational trades and commerce of medieval England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Boothe
Among Census respondents with the surname Boothe, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.0%. The next largest groups are Black (17.1%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Boothe 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 Boothe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.0% · 6,423
- Black or African American17.1% · 1,466
- Two or more races3.9% · 334
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 257
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 55
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 30
Timeline
Historical Census data for Boothe
Boothe 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
#4,100
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,656
+441 bearers (+5.4%)
Per 100,000 2.93
Rank movement Down 127 places
2020
#4,021
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,565
-91 bearers (-1.1%)
Per 100,000 2.87
Rank movement Up 79 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,973 | 8,215 | 3.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,100 | 8,656 | 2.93 | +441 bearers (+5.4%) | Down 127 places |
| 2020 | #4,021 | 8,565 | 2.87 | -91 bearers (-1.1%) | Up 79 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 Boothe 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 | #4,100 | #4,021 | 1.9% |
| Count | 8,656 | 8,565 | -1.1% |
| Per 100K | 2.93 | 2.87 | -2.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Boothe bearers went from 8,656 to 8,565 (-1.1% change). The surname moved up 79 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,100 to #4,021.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Boothe
FAQ
Boothe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Boothe?
Name Census estimates that about 9,822 living Americans carry the surname Boothe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 34,897 residents.
How common is Boothe?
Boothe ranks #4,021 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.87 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,565 people with the surname Boothe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,822), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.87 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.87 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Boothe.
Has Boothe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Boothe went from 8,656 recorded bearers to 8,565. That is a decrease of 91 (-1.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #4,100 to #4,021.
What does the Census say about the background of Boothe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Boothe, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.0%. The next largest groups are Black (17.1%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Boothe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.0% (6,423 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Boothe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.0%), Black (17.1%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Boothe (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 Boothe mean?
An occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of boots or a nickname for someone who wore boots. 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 Boothe (2.87 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 Boothe?
See how many people are called Boothe on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.