2000
#8,145
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,748
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.39
Rare Last name
Carruth
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a red-colored ford or crossing of a river.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,280 Americans carry the last name Carruth. That puts it at #8,484 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.25 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 80,083 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Carruth 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 Carruth with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.3K
1 in 80,083
Census rank
#8,484
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,732 bearers of the surname Carruth in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.25 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8484th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Carruth, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.8%. The next largest groups are Black (17.0%) and Hispanic (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Carruth
The surname Carruth has its origins in Scotland and can be traced back to the late 12th century. It is derived from the Gaelic word 'carragh', meaning a rocky hill or cairn, and 'ath', meaning a ford or shallow river crossing. This suggests that the name originally referred to someone who lived near a rocky hill or cairn by a ford or river crossing.
One of the earliest recorded references to the Carruth name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, where it appears as 'Carruther'. This was a record of Scottish nobles and landowners who swore fealty to King Edward I of England. The name is also mentioned in the Scottish Exchequer Rolls of the 14th century, spelled as 'Carrutheris'.
In the 16th century, the Carruths were a prominent family in the Scottish Borders region, particularly in the counties of Dumfriesshire and Roxburghshire. They held lands and estates in places like Holmains and Mouswald. One notable member of the family was John Carruth of Holmains, who lived in the late 16th century and was known for his involvement in local politics and affairs.
Another noteworthy figure was George Carruth, a Scottish minister and writer who was born in Ayrshire in 1639. He published several works on religious and theological topics, including a book titled 'The Dreadful Blasphemer' in 1698.
In the 18th century, the Carruth name began to spread beyond Scotland as some members of the family emigrated to other parts of the British Isles and beyond. One such individual was William Carruth, who was born in Scotland in 1748 and later settled in County Down, Ireland, where he worked as a farmer and landowner.
As the centuries progressed, the Carruth surname continued to be found across Scotland, with concentrations in areas like Lanarkshire, Ayrshire, and the Scottish Borders. Notable individuals with the name include William Herbert Carruth, an American poet and academic who lived from 1859 to 1924, and William Wallace Carruth, a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Canadian House of Commons in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Carruth
Among Census respondents with the surname Carruth, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.8%. The next largest groups are Black (17.0%) and Hispanic (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Carruth 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 Carruth surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.8% · 2,790
- Black or African American17.0% · 634
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 181
- Two or more races2.8% · 105
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Carruth
Carruth 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
#8,541
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,854
+106 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Down 396 places
2020
#8,484
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,732
-122 bearers (-3.2%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Up 57 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,145 | 3,748 | 1.39 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,541 | 3,854 | 1.31 | +106 bearers (+2.8%) | Down 396 places |
| 2020 | #8,484 | 3,732 | 1.25 | -122 bearers (-3.2%) | Up 57 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 Carruth 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 | #8,541 | #8,484 | 0.7% |
| Count | 3,854 | 3,732 | -3.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.31 | 1.25 | -4.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Carruth bearers went from 3,854 to 3,732 (-3.2% change). The surname moved up 57 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,541 to #8,484.
FAQ
Carruth surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Carruth?
Name Census estimates that about 4,280 living Americans carry the surname Carruth. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 80,083 residents.
How common is Carruth?
Carruth ranks #8,484 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.25 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 3,732 people with the surname Carruth. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,280), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.25 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.25 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 Carruth.
Has Carruth become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Carruth went from 3,854 recorded bearers to 3,732. That is a decrease of 122 (-3.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,541 to #8,484.
What does the Census say about the background of Carruth?
Among Census respondents with the surname Carruth, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.8%. The next largest groups are Black (17.0%) and Hispanic (4.8%). 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 Carruth in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.8% (2,790 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Carruth appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (74.8%), Black (17.0%), Hispanic (4.8%). 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 Carruth (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 Carruth mean?
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a red-colored ford or crossing of a river. 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 Carruth (1.25 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 last name Carruth?
Want to know how many people have the last name Carruth? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.