2000
#6,131
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,150
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.91
Rare Last name
Carothers
An English occupational surname referring to someone who makes or sells carriages or carts.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,065 Americans carry the last name Carothers. That puts it at #6,200 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 56,513 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Carothers 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 56,513
Census rank
#6,200
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,289 bearers of the surname Carothers in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6200th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Carothers, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.1%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Carothers
The surname Carothers is of Scottish origin, tracing its roots back to the Lowlands region of Scotland. It is believed to have originated as a territorial name, derived from the lands of Carruthers in Dumfriesshire. The earliest recorded spelling of the name dates back to the 12th century when it appeared as "Carotheres."
The name Carothers is thought to be derived from the Gaelic words "carre," meaning "fort" or "castle," and "rydderis," meaning "riders" or "soldiers." This suggests that the name may have been associated with individuals who were soldiers or warriors stationed at a particular fort or castle in the region.
In the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented the names of Scottish nobles who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England, several variations of the name appear, including Carutheris and Karuthers. This provides evidence of the surname's early use and its connection to the Scottish nobility.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Carothers was Sir William Carothers, who lived in the late 13th century and was a prominent figure in the Scottish Wars of Independence against England. Another notable bearer of the name was John Carothers (1698-1785), an Irish-born Presbyterian minister who emigrated to Pennsylvania and played a significant role in the early history of the American colonies.
Other historical figures with the Carothers surname include Wallace Hume Carothers (1896-1937), an American chemist who pioneered the development of synthetic polymers and is credited with the invention of nylon; and Neil Carothers (1909-1981), a Canadian mathematician and academic known for his contributions to the field of combinatorics.
In the United States, the Carothers surname can be traced back to the 18th century, when Scottish and Irish immigrants began settling in various regions, particularly in the Appalachian Mountains and the American South. The name has also been found in historical records from the British Isles, including Scotland, Ireland, and England, where it has been associated with various locations and place names.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Carothers
Among Census respondents with the surname Carothers, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.1%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Carothers 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 Carothers surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.8% · 3,904
- Black or African American18.1% · 955
- Two or more races3.9% · 206
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 159
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 38
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 27
Timeline
Historical Census data for Carothers
Carothers 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
#6,238
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,480
+330 bearers (+6.4%)
Per 100,000 1.86
Rank movement Down 107 places
2020
#6,200
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,289
-191 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 1.77
Rank movement Up 38 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,131 | 5,150 | 1.91 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,238 | 5,480 | 1.86 | +330 bearers (+6.4%) | Down 107 places |
| 2020 | #6,200 | 5,289 | 1.77 | -191 bearers (-3.5%) | Up 38 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 Carothers 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 | #6,238 | #6,200 | 0.6% |
| Count | 5,480 | 5,289 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.86 | 1.77 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Carothers bearers went from 5,480 to 5,289 (-3.5% change). The surname moved up 38 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,238 to #6,200.
FAQ
Carothers surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Carothers?
Name Census estimates that about 6,065 living Americans carry the surname Carothers. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 56,513 residents.
How common is Carothers?
Carothers ranks #6,200 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.77 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 5,289 people with the surname Carothers. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,065), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.77 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 Carothers.
Has Carothers become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Carothers went from 5,480 recorded bearers to 5,289. That is a decrease of 191 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,238 to #6,200.
What does the Census say about the background of Carothers?
Among Census respondents with the surname Carothers, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.1%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Carothers in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.8% (3,904 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Carothers appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.8%), Black (18.1%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Carothers (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 Carothers mean?
An English occupational surname referring to someone who makes or sells carriages or carts. 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 Carothers (1.77 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 Carothers?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Carothers at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.