2000
#5,734
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,538
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.05
Rare Last name
Carmack
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Cormaic," meaning "descendant of Cormac," a personal name meaning "charioteer."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,111 Americans carry the last name Carmack. That puts it at #6,160 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 56,088 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Carmack 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
6.1K
1 in 56,088
Census rank
#6,160
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,329 bearers of the surname Carmack in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6160th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Carmack, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.0%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Carmack
The surname Carmack is believed to have originated in England and Scotland during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "cærr" meaning a rocky hill or outcrop, and "mæc" meaning a companion or associate. Thus, the name may have referred to someone who lived near a rocky hill or outcrop.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Carmack can be traced back to the late 12th century in various tax rolls and parish records from counties in northern England and southern Scotland. Variations in spelling included Carmac, Carmak, and Carmake.
In the 13th century, the Carmack surname appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Norfolk, which were financial records maintained by the English Exchequer. This suggests that the name was present in East Anglia at that time.
The Hundred Rolls of 1273, a census-like record of landowners in England, mentions a John Carmac from Cambridgeshire. This is one of the earliest known mentions of the name in an official document.
In Scotland, the name Carmack can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which recorded individuals who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. One such person was William Carmac from Roxburghshire.
Notable individuals with the surname Carmack include:
1. John Carmack (born 1970), an American computer programmer and engineer, best known for his pioneering work in 3D graphics and game engines.
2. William Carmack (1857-1923), an American politician who served as a U.S. Senator from Tennessee from 1901 to 1907.
3. Paul Carmack (1921-2005), an American artist and illustrator known for his work on pulp fiction book covers and magazine illustrations.
4. Horace D. Carmack (1859-1908), an American journalist and politician who served as a U.S. Senator from Tennessee from 1901 to 1907.
5. Walter Carmack (1870-1946), an American businessman and politician who served as the 30th Mayor of Memphis, Tennessee, from 1923 to 1927.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Carmack
Among Census respondents with the surname Carmack, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.0%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Carmack 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 Carmack surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.4% · 4,553
- Black or African American6.0% · 319
- Two or more races4.2% · 224
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 158
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 52
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 23
Timeline
Historical Census data for Carmack
Carmack 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
#6,072
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,648
+110 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 1.91
Rank movement Down 338 places
2020
#6,160
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,329
-319 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 1.78
Rank movement Down 88 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,734 | 5,538 | 2.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,072 | 5,648 | 1.91 | +110 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 338 places |
| 2020 | #6,160 | 5,329 | 1.78 | -319 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 88 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 Carmack 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 | #6,072 | #6,160 | -1.4% |
| Count | 5,648 | 5,329 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.91 | 1.78 | -6.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Carmack bearers went from 5,648 to 5,329 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 88 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,072 to #6,160.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Carmack
FAQ
Carmack surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Carmack?
Name Census estimates that about 6,111 living Americans carry the surname Carmack. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 56,088 residents.
How common is Carmack?
Carmack ranks #6,160 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.78 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 5,329 people with the surname Carmack. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,111), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.78 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 Carmack.
Has Carmack become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Carmack went from 5,648 recorded bearers to 5,329. That is a decrease of 319 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,072 to #6,160.
What does the Census say about the background of Carmack?
Among Census respondents with the surname Carmack, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.0%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Carmack in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.4% (4,553 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Carmack appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.4%), Black (6.0%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Carmack (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 Carmack mean?
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Cormaic," meaning "descendant of Cormac," a personal name meaning "charioteer." 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 Carmack (1.78 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 Americans have the surname Carmack?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.