2000
#137,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Brumbles
A habitational surname derived from a place named Brumbles.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Brumbles. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brumbles 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Brumbles in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brumbles, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brumbles
The surname Brumbles is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be a locational surname derived from a place name, suggesting that the earliest bearers of this name hailed from a specific town or village.
One possible origin for the name Brumbles could be from the Old English words "brom" meaning "broom" and "hyll" meaning "hill." This would suggest that the name may have referred to someone who lived near a hill covered with broom plants. Alternatively, it could have originated from a place name with a similar spelling, such as Brombley or Broomley.
Although the name does not appear in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, there are records of the surname Brumbles in various parish registers and historical documents from the 13th century onwards.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1297, where a certain John de Brumbles is mentioned. Another early example is found in the Feet of Fines for Suffolk, dated 1310, which lists a Robert de Brumbles.
In the 15th century, the surname appears to have been concentrated in the northern counties of England, particularly in Yorkshire and Lancashire. During this period, notable individuals with the name included Thomas Brumbles, who was a merchant in York in the late 1400s, and William Brumbles, a landowner in Lancashire born around 1470.
As the centuries passed, the surname spread to other parts of England and underwent various spelling variations, such as Brumbles, Brumble, and Brumbell. In the 17th century, a prominent figure with this name was John Brumbles, a clergyman who served as the Rector of St. Michael's Church in Coventry from 1620 to 1642.
Another notable bearer of the Brumbles surname was George Brumbles, a soldier who fought in the English Civil War and was stationed in London during the 1640s. In the 18th century, records show a William Brumbles who was a successful merchant in Bristol, born in 1712.
Moving into the 19th century, one of the more well-known individuals with this surname was Edward Brumbles, an author and historian born in 1828 in Oxfordshire. He wrote several books on the history and culture of England, including "The Annals of Mercia" and "Chronicles of the English Countryside."
Throughout its history, the surname Brumbles has maintained a presence in various parts of England, though it has never been among the most common surnames in the country. Despite its relatively modest prevalence, the name has endured for centuries and has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including merchants, clergymen, soldiers, and scholars.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brumbles
Among Census respondents with the surname Brumbles, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Brumbles 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 Brumbles surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 98
- Two or more races4.7% · 5
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brumbles
Brumbles 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
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
+11 bearers (+9.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 1,367 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-17 bearers (-13.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 15,890 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #137,816 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+9.8%) | Up 1,367 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -17 bearers (-13.8%) | Down 15,890 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 Brumbles 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 | #136,449 | #152,339 | -11.6% |
| Count | 123 | 106 | -13.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brumbles bearers went from 123 to 106 (-13.8% change). The surname moved down 15,890 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #152,339.
FAQ
Brumbles surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brumbles?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Brumbles. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Brumbles?
Brumbles ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Brumbles. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Brumbles.
Has Brumbles become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brumbles went from 123 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 17 (-13.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Brumbles?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brumbles, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Black (0.9%). 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 Brumbles in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brumbles appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Two or More Races (4.7%), Black (0.9%). 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 Brumbles (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 Brumbles mean?
A habitational surname derived from a place named Brumbles. 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 Brumbles (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 Brumbles?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.