2000
#8,169
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,733
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.38
Rare Last name
Callis
Derived from a place name meaning "pebble" in French, or from a given name meaning "faithful" in Latin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,993 Americans carry the last name Callis. That puts it at #9,015 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.16 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 85,839 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Callis 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 Callis with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 85,839
Census rank
#9,015
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,482 bearers of the surname Callis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.16 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9015th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Callis, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.9%. The next largest groups are Black (17.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Callis
The surname Callis originated in England during the late medieval period, deriving from the Old English word "cald" meaning cold or chilly. It likely referred to someone who lived in a cold or exposed area, or may have been a nickname for someone with a cold or reserved demeanor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where a Robert Calcle is mentioned in Berkshire. Variations in spelling such as Calkcle, Caulkle, and Caulkwell were common in these early records due to inconsistencies in scribal practices and regional dialects.
The Callis surname is also found in medieval records from the counties of Devon, Somerset, and Gloucestershire, suggesting it originated in the West Country region of England. Some genealogists have proposed a connection to the village of Callice in Somerset, though this has not been definitively established.
Notable individuals bearing the Callis surname include John Callis (c.1655-1725), an English lawyer and author of the influential legal treatise "Reading upon the Statute of Sewers." Another early bearer of the name was Thomas Callis (c.1600-1679), a member of the English Parliament during the Commonwealth period.
In the 17th century, the Callis family established itself in Virginia, with William Callis (c.1622-1686) becoming a prominent landowner and member of the House of Burgesses. His descendants played significant roles in the colonial and revolutionary eras of American history.
Other notable individuals with the Callis surname include Robert Callis (1648-1719), an English Catholic priest and writer; and John Callis (1766-1823), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars.
Throughout its history, the Callis name has been associated with various professions and backgrounds, from legal scholars and politicians to military figures and landowners, reflecting the diverse origins and paths of those who bore this distinctive English surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Callis
Among Census respondents with the surname Callis, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.9%. The next largest groups are Black (17.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Callis 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 Callis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.9% · 2,573
- Black or African American17.4% · 606
- Two or more races4.3% · 149
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 122
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Callis
Callis 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
#8,496
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,877
+144 bearers (+3.9%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Down 327 places
2020
#9,015
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,482
-395 bearers (-10.2%)
Per 100,000 1.16
Rank movement Down 519 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,169 | 3,733 | 1.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,496 | 3,877 | 1.31 | +144 bearers (+3.9%) | Down 327 places |
| 2020 | #9,015 | 3,482 | 1.16 | -395 bearers (-10.2%) | Down 519 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 Callis 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 | #8,496 | #9,015 | -6.1% |
| Count | 3,877 | 3,482 | -10.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.31 | 1.16 | -11.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Callis bearers went from 3,877 to 3,482 (-10.2% change). The surname moved down 519 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,496 to #9,015.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Callis
FAQ
Callis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Callis?
Name Census estimates that about 3,993 living Americans carry the surname Callis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 85,839 residents.
How common is Callis?
Callis ranks #9,015 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.16 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 3,482 people with the surname Callis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,993), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.16 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.16 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 Callis.
Has Callis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Callis went from 3,877 recorded bearers to 3,482. That is a decrease of 395 (-10.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,496 to #9,015.
What does the Census say about the background of Callis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Callis, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.9%. The next largest groups are Black (17.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Callis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.9% (2,573 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Callis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.9%), Black (17.4%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Callis (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 Callis mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "pebble" in French, or from a given name meaning "faithful" in Latin. 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 Callis (1.16 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 Callis?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.