2000
#10,740
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,727
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.01
Rare Last name
Borne
A French topographical surname denoting someone who lived near a boundary or marker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,049 Americans carry the last name Borne. That puts it at #11,341 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 112,415 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Borne 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 Borne with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.0K
1 in 112,415
Census rank
#11,341
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,659 bearers of the surname Borne in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11341st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Borne, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.7%) and Hispanic (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Borne
The surname BORNE has its origins in England, with records dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English word "burna," meaning a stream or a brook, indicating that the name originally referred to someone who lived near a stream or a river.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name BORNE can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, where it is listed as "Atte Bourne." This spelling suggests that the name was initially used as a descriptive term, referring to a person's place of residence near a particular stream or brook.
During the Middle Ages, the BORNE surname was prevalent in various parts of England, particularly in the counties of Wiltshire, Dorset, and Somerset. In fact, several places in these counties, such as Bournemouth and Borne Valley, bear the name, reflecting the influence of the BORNE surname in the local geography.
The Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of land ownership compiled in 1086 by order of William the Conqueror, does not contain any direct references to the BORNE surname. However, it does mention several place names that include the word "burna," suggesting that the name's origins predate the Norman Conquest of England.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the BORNE surname was Sir John Bourne, a prominent English lawyer and judge who lived from 1457 to 1533. He served as the Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas and played a significant role in the legal and political affairs of the Tudor period.
Another notable figure with the BORNE surname was Thomas Borne, a 16th-century English composer and organist who lived from around 1500 to 1561. He was renowned for his contributions to sacred music and served as the Master of the Choristers at St. Paul's Cathedral in London.
In the 17th century, Robert Borne (1599-1668) was a prominent English mathematician and astronomer. He made significant contributions to the field of navigation and was appointed as the Gresham Professor of Astronomy at Gresham College in London.
The BORNE surname also has a connection to the literary world through the writer and novelist Benjamin Robert Haydon (1786-1846). Although his surname was Haydon, his mother's maiden name was BORNE, and he often used the surname in his writings and correspondence.
Lastly, a more recent figure with the BORNE surname was Sir Evan Nepean Borne (1861-1942), a British civil servant and colonial administrator. He served as the Governor of the Bahamas from 1908 to 1913 and played a significant role in the administration of British colonial territories.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Borne
Among Census respondents with the surname Borne, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.7%) and Hispanic (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Borne 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 Borne surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.8% · 2,121
- Black or African American11.7% · 310
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 132
- Two or more races2.5% · 66
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Borne
Borne 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
#10,424
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,087
+360 bearers (+13.2%)
Per 100,000 1.05
Rank movement Up 316 places
2020
#11,341
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,659
-428 bearers (-13.9%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Down 917 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,740 | 2,727 | 1.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,424 | 3,087 | 1.05 | +360 bearers (+13.2%) | Up 316 places |
| 2020 | #11,341 | 2,659 | 0.89 | -428 bearers (-13.9%) | Down 917 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 Borne 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 | #10,424 | #11,341 | -8.8% |
| Count | 3,087 | 2,659 | -13.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.05 | 0.89 | -15.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Borne bearers went from 3,087 to 2,659 (-13.9% change). The surname moved down 917 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,424 to #11,341.
FAQ
Borne surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Borne?
Name Census estimates that about 3,049 living Americans carry the surname Borne. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 112,415 residents.
How common is Borne?
Borne ranks #11,341 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.89 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 2,659 people with the surname Borne. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,049), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.89 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 Borne.
Has Borne become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Borne went from 3,087 recorded bearers to 2,659. That is a decrease of 428 (-13.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,424 to #11,341.
What does the Census say about the background of Borne?
Among Census respondents with the surname Borne, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.8%. The next largest groups are Black (11.7%) and Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Borne in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.8% (2,121 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Borne appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.8%), Black (11.7%), Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Borne (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 Borne mean?
A French topographical surname denoting someone who lived near a boundary or marker. 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 Borne (0.89 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 Borne?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.