2000
#11,009
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,650
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.98
Rare Last name
Ewers
An occupational surname for a maker or seller of ewers, which are decorative pitchers or jugs.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,936 Americans carry the last name Ewers. That puts it at #11,709 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 116,742 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ewers 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 Ewers with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 116,742
Census rank
#11,709
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,560 bearers of the surname Ewers in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11709th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ewers, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.0%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ewers
The surname Ewers is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "aewere," meaning a worker or keeper of cattle. This name was likely first used as an occupational surname for individuals who worked as cattle herders or shepherds.
The earliest known recorded instance of the surname Ewers dates back to the late 12th century in the county of Yorkshire, England. In the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1199, a person named William Ewers is mentioned as a landholder.
During the medieval period, the name appeared with various spellings such as Ewerr, Ewhers, and Eweherd, reflecting the regional dialects and inconsistent spelling conventions of the time. These variations gradually evolved into the modern spelling of Ewers.
One notable historical figure with the surname Ewers was Sir John Ewers, a prominent English merchant and diplomat who lived from 1496 to 1558. He served as the ambassador to the Netherlands and was involved in negotiations with the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.
Another individual of note was William Ewers (1703-1788), an English musician and composer who served as the Master of the Choristers at St. Paul's Cathedral in London from 1736 to 1777.
In the 17th century, the Ewers surname can be found in several parish records in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex, indicating its presence in eastern England during that time.
The name Ewers has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Ewers Green in the county of Shropshire and Ewers Close in the village of Compton, Berkshire.
Other notable individuals with the surname Ewers include John Ewers (1788-1857), an English landscape painter known for his depictions of rural scenes, and John Ewers (1849-1913), a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London during the late 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ewers
Among Census respondents with the surname Ewers, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.0%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Ewers 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 Ewers surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.8% · 2,145
- Black or African American8.0% · 205
- Two or more races3.8% · 96
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 79
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 21
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ewers
Ewers 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
#11,568
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,718
+68 bearers (+2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Down 559 places
2020
#11,709
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,560
-158 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Down 141 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,009 | 2,650 | 0.98 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,568 | 2,718 | 0.92 | +68 bearers (+2.6%) | Down 559 places |
| 2020 | #11,709 | 2,560 | 0.86 | -158 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 141 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 Ewers 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 | #11,568 | #11,709 | -1.2% |
| Count | 2,718 | 2,560 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.92 | 0.86 | -6.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ewers bearers went from 2,718 to 2,560 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 141 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,568 to #11,709.
FAQ
Ewers surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ewers?
Name Census estimates that about 2,936 living Americans carry the surname Ewers. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 116,742 residents.
How common is Ewers?
Ewers ranks #11,709 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.86 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 2,560 people with the surname Ewers. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,936), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.86 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 Ewers.
Has Ewers become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ewers went from 2,718 recorded bearers to 2,560. That is a decrease of 158 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,568 to #11,709.
What does the Census say about the background of Ewers?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ewers, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.0%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Ewers in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.8% (2,145 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ewers appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.8%), Black (8.0%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Ewers (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 Ewers mean?
An occupational surname for a maker or seller of ewers, which are decorative pitchers or jugs. 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 Ewers (0.86 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 Ewers?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.