2010
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Bumbry
A habitational surname originating from a location named Bambry or Bombrey.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Bumbry. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bumbry 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Bumbry in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bumbry, the largest self-reported group is Black at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (4.9%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bumbry
The surname BUMBRY is believed to have originated in England, likely during the medieval period. It is thought to be a locational name derived from a place name, possibly referring to a specific town or village where the earliest bearers of the name resided.
One theory suggests that the name BUMBRY is derived from the Old English words "brom" and "bury," which together can be translated as "bramble town" or "the town in the brambles." This indicates that the name may have originated in an area surrounded by brambles or thickets, which were common in many parts of England during that time.
Another possible origin of the name BUMBRY is that it could be a variation of the surname "Bromborough," which is a place name in Cheshire, England. This suggests that the earliest bearers of the BUMBRY name may have hailed from or lived near the town of Bromborough.
While there are no definitive records of the BUMBRY name appearing in historical documents such as the Domesday Book, some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various parish records and tax rolls from the 16th and 17th centuries in England.
One notable individual with the BUMBRY surname was John Bumbry, an English clergyman who lived in the late 16th century. He served as the Rector of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, from 1580 until his death in 1599.
Another individual of historical significance was Thomas Bumbry, who was born in the village of Deddington, Oxfordshire, in 1624. He was a prominent landowner and served as a magistrate in the local community during the mid-17th century.
In the 18th century, there was a notable family of Bumbry's who resided in the town of Shrewsbury, Shropshire. One member of this family, William Bumbry (1712-1792), was a successful merchant and served as a town councilor in Shrewsbury for several years.
Moving into the 19th century, one of the more prominent individuals with the BUMBRY surname was Mary Ann Bumbry (1819-1895), who was born in the village of Staverton, Northamptonshire. She was a respected educator and founded a private school for girls in the nearby town of Daventry.
In more recent times, one of the most well-known bearers of the BUMBRY name was Grace Bumbry (born 1937), an American opera singer who achieved international fame for her performances in various operas and concert halls around the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bumbry
Among Census respondents with the surname Bumbry, the largest self-reported group is Black at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (4.9%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Bumbry 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 Bumbry surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American90.2% · 92
- White4.9% · 5
- Two or more races4.9% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bumbry
Bumbry appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-6 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 3,223 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -6 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 3,223 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 Bumbry 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 | #151,532 | #154,755 | -2.1% |
| Count | 108 | 102 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -14.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bumbry bearers went from 108 to 102 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 3,223 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #154,755.
FAQ
Bumbry surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bumbry?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Bumbry. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Bumbry?
Bumbry ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Bumbry. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Bumbry.
Has Bumbry become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bumbry went from 108 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #151,532 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Bumbry?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bumbry, the largest self-reported group is Black at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (4.9%) and Two or More Races (4.9%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Bumbry in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.2% (92 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bumbry appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (90.2%), White (4.9%), Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Bumbry (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 Bumbry mean?
A habitational surname originating from a location named Bambry or Bombrey. 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 Bumbry (0.03 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 common is the surname Bumbry?
Want to know how many people are called Bumbry? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.