2000
#7,362
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,171
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.55
Rare Last name
Croom
Habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "crooked river" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,776 Americans carry the last name Croom. That puts it at #7,666 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.39 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 71,766 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Croom 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 Croom with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.8K
1 in 71,766
Census rank
#7,666
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,165 bearers of the surname Croom in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.39 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7666th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Croom, the largest self-reported group is Black at 46.4%. The next largest groups are White (44.3%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Croom
The surname Croom has its origins in Scotland and England, tracing back to the 12th century. It is believed to be a locational name derived from the Old English words "crom" or "crumb," meaning "crooked" or "bent," and may have been given to someone who lived near a crooked stream or a curved piece of land.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Croom appears in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1195, where a person named Gilbert de Crom is mentioned. The surname also appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Crome" in various locations across England.
In Scotland, the name Croom is associated with the village of Croom, located in the county of Fife. Records show that a family with the name Croom held lands in this area as early as the 13th century. The spelling variations of the name in historical documents include Crom, Crome, Cromme, and Crumme.
Notable individuals with the surname Croom throughout history include:
1. Sir John Croom (c. 1520-1593), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Gloucestershire during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
2. William Croom (1771-1831), a Scottish botanist and cotton planter in Georgia, United States, who discovered several new plant species.
3. Michael Croom (1790-1860), a British Rear Admiral in the Royal Navy, who served during the Napoleonic Wars and later became a colonial governor.
4. Henry Croom (1824-1892), an American politician and lawyer who served as a Confederate States Senator during the American Civil War.
5. Jane Martha Croom (1825-1905), an English writer and philanthropist known for her work in improving education and living conditions for women and children.
The name Croom has also been associated with various place names, such as Croom Hill in Gloucestershire, England, and Croom Creek in Georgia, United States, named after William Croom, the botanist.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Croom
Among Census respondents with the surname Croom, the largest self-reported group is Black at 46.4%. The next largest groups are White (44.3%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Croom 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 Croom surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American46.4% · 1,932
- White44.3% · 1,847
- Two or more races5.4% · 223
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 124
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 21
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Croom
Croom 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
#7,545
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,407
+236 bearers (+5.7%)
Per 100,000 1.49
Rank movement Down 183 places
2020
#7,666
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,165
-242 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 1.39
Rank movement Down 121 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,362 | 4,171 | 1.55 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,545 | 4,407 | 1.49 | +236 bearers (+5.7%) | Down 183 places |
| 2020 | #7,666 | 4,165 | 1.39 | -242 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 121 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 Croom 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 | #7,545 | #7,666 | -1.6% |
| Count | 4,407 | 4,165 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.49 | 1.39 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Croom bearers went from 4,407 to 4,165 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 121 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,545 to #7,666.
FAQ
Croom surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Croom?
Name Census estimates that about 4,776 living Americans carry the surname Croom. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 71,766 residents.
How common is Croom?
Croom ranks #7,666 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.39 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 4,165 people with the surname Croom. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,776), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.39 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.39 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 Croom.
Has Croom become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Croom went from 4,407 recorded bearers to 4,165. That is a decrease of 242 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,545 to #7,666.
What does the Census say about the background of Croom?
Among Census respondents with the surname Croom, the largest self-reported group is Black at 46.4%. The next largest groups are White (44.3%) and Two or More Races (5.4%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Croom in the 2020 Census, accounting for 46.4% (1,932 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Croom appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (46.4%), White (44.3%), Two or More Races (5.4%). 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 Croom (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 Croom mean?
Habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "crooked river" in Old English. 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 Croom (1.39 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 Croom?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.