2000
#7,497
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,097
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.52
Rare Last name
Countryman
A surname referring to a person from the countryside or a rural area, as opposed to a town.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,553 Americans carry the last name Countryman. That puts it at #8,005 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.33 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 75,281 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Countryman 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
4.6K
1 in 75,281
Census rank
#8,005
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,970 bearers of the surname Countryman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.33 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8005th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Countryman, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Countryman
The surname Countryman is of English origin, derived from the Old English words 'cuntrie' and 'man', meaning a person from a particular rural area or countryside. This last name likely originated in the 13th or 14th century, when surnames began to be adopted in England.
The earliest known record of the surname Countryman dates back to 1327, when a John le Cuntreman was mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Cambridgeshire. This suggests that the name may have originally been specific to certain regions of England, possibly East Anglia or the Midlands.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in various spellings, such as Contryman, Cuntreyman, and Cuntriman, reflecting the inconsistencies in spelling during that era. One notable example is William Contryman, who was recorded in the Parish Registers of St. Michael's Church in Coventry in 1489.
The Countryman surname is associated with several place names in England, including Countrymanside in Hertfordshire and Countrymansfield in Derbyshire. These place names likely influenced the surname's evolution and regional distribution.
Among the notable individuals bearing the Countryman surname throughout history are:
1. John Countryman (c. 1560 - 1620), an English merchant and trader who established trade routes with the East Indies.
2. Elizabeth Countryman (1688 - 1764), a prominent Quaker minister and author from Pennsylvania, known for her influential writings on religious topics.
3. William Countryman (1766 - 1842), a British soldier who served in the Napoleonic Wars and was awarded the Army Gold Cross for his bravery at the Battle of Waterloo.
4. Sarah Countryman (1810 - 1892), an American educator and abolitionist, who worked alongside notable figures like Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth in the anti-slavery movement.
5. Albert Countryman (1879 - 1956), a British architect and urban planner, known for his innovative designs and contributions to the development of modern city planning principles.
While the Countryman surname has been present throughout English history, it remains relatively uncommon compared to some other English surnames, reflecting its possible regional origins and associations with rural areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Countryman
Among Census respondents with the surname Countryman, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Countryman 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 Countryman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.1% · 3,377
- Two or more races5.0% · 199
- Black or African American4.2% · 167
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 135
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 71
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Countryman
Countryman 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
#7,977
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,144
+47 bearers (+1.1%)
Per 100,000 1.40
Rank movement Down 480 places
2020
#8,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,970
-174 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.33
Rank movement Down 28 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,497 | 4,097 | 1.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,977 | 4,144 | 1.40 | +47 bearers (+1.1%) | Down 480 places |
| 2020 | #8,005 | 3,970 | 1.33 | -174 bearers (-4.2%) | Down 28 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 Countryman 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 | #7,977 | #8,005 | -0.4% |
| Count | 4,144 | 3,970 | -4.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.40 | 1.33 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Countryman bearers went from 4,144 to 3,970 (-4.2% change). The surname moved down 28 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,977 to #8,005.
FAQ
Countryman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Countryman?
Name Census estimates that about 4,553 living Americans carry the surname Countryman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 75,281 residents.
How common is Countryman?
Countryman ranks #8,005 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.33 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 3,970 people with the surname Countryman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,553), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.33 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.33 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 Countryman.
Has Countryman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Countryman went from 4,144 recorded bearers to 3,970. That is a decrease of 174 (-4.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,977 to #8,005.
What does the Census say about the background of Countryman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Countryman, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (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 Countryman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.1% (3,377 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Countryman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.1%), Two or More Races (5.0%), Black (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 Countryman (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 Countryman mean?
A surname referring to a person from the countryside or a rural area, as opposed to a 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 Countryman (1.33 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 Countryman?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.