2000
#4,460
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,321
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.71
Rare Last name
Burrow
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a burrow or hill, or in a fortified town.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,209 Americans carry the last name Burrow. That puts it at #4,791 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.40 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 41,753 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Burrow 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 Burrow with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.2K
1 in 41,753
Census rank
#4,791
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,159 bearers of the surname Burrow in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.40 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4791st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Burrow, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.2%. The next largest groups are Black (10.8%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Burrow
The surname Burrow is of English origin, and it can be traced back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old English word "burg," which means a fortified town or a dwelling place. This name was likely used to identify individuals who lived near or worked in a fortified town or a borough.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Burrow can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire, which dates back to 1273. This document mentions a person named Reginald de la Burgh, which is an early spelling variation of the surname Burrow.
During the medieval period, the name was often associated with place names that contained the word "burgh" or "borough." For example, the surname Burrow could have originated from places like Boroughbridge in Yorkshire, or Boroughbury in Northamptonshire.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are several entries that mention places with the "burgh" or "bury" element, which could have been the source of the surname Burrow. For instance, the book records the existence of Bury St. Edmunds in Suffolk, which was an important town at the time.
One notable individual with the surname Burrow was Sir James Burrow (1701-1782), an English lawyer and author. He served as Master of the Crown Office and is known for his legal writings, including the "Reports of Cases Adjudged in the Court of King's Bench."
Another prominent figure was George Burrow (1785-1845), a British naval officer and explorer. He was part of the expedition that explored the Arctic regions in the early 19th century and made important contributions to the mapping of the region.
In the literary world, Reuben Burrow (1747-1792) was an English poet and playwright. He is best known for his work "The Parliament of Venus," which satirized the political climate of his time.
Edward Burrow (1633-1701) was an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works, including "The Excellency of the Study of Divinity."
Lastly, William Burrow (1758-1827) was a British mathematician and inventor. He is credited with developing several mathematical instruments and contributing to the field of navigation and surveying.
These examples demonstrate the widespread use of the surname Burrow throughout history, highlighting its English origins and its association with various professions and achievements.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Burrow
Among Census respondents with the surname Burrow, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.2%. The next largest groups are Black (10.8%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Burrow 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 Burrow surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.2% · 5,667
- Black or African American10.8% · 772
- Two or more races4.9% · 350
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 252
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 71
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 47
Timeline
Historical Census data for Burrow
Burrow 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
#4,707
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,539
+218 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 2.56
Rank movement Down 247 places
2020
#4,791
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,159
-380 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 2.40
Rank movement Down 84 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,460 | 7,321 | 2.71 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,707 | 7,539 | 2.56 | +218 bearers (+3.0%) | Down 247 places |
| 2020 | #4,791 | 7,159 | 2.40 | -380 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 84 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 Burrow 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 | #4,707 | #4,791 | -1.8% |
| Count | 7,539 | 7,159 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.56 | 2.40 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Burrow bearers went from 7,539 to 7,159 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 84 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,707 to #4,791.
FAQ
Burrow surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Burrow?
Name Census estimates that about 8,209 living Americans carry the surname Burrow. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 41,753 residents.
How common is Burrow?
Burrow ranks #4,791 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.40 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 7,159 people with the surname Burrow. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,209), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.4 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.40 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 Burrow.
Has Burrow become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Burrow went from 7,539 recorded bearers to 7,159. That is a decrease of 380 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,707 to #4,791.
What does the Census say about the background of Burrow?
Among Census respondents with the surname Burrow, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.2%. The next largest groups are Black (10.8%) 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Burrow in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.2% (5,667 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Burrow appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.2%), Black (10.8%), 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 Burrow (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 Burrow mean?
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a burrow or hill, or in a fortified town. 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 Burrow (2.40 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 Burrow?
Want to know how many people have the last name Burrow? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.