Find out how popular the last name Fargo is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Fargo.

Fargo, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Fargo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Fargo in America

Fargo is the 13646th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Fargo surname appeared 2,219 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Fargo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Fargo to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Fargo

The surname Fargo is believed to have originated in Scotland, likely emerging sometime during the medieval period between the 11th and 16th centuries. It may derive from the Scottish Gaelic word "fairge," meaning "sea" or "ocean," potentially indicating that the name's earliest bearers lived near the coast or were involved in maritime activities.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Fargo can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a collection of instruments recording the submissions and homages made by Scottish nobles and landowners to Edward I of England during the Wars of Scottish Independence. The rolls mention a "William de Fargho" from Ayrshire, suggesting that the name was already in use by the late 13th century.

The name Fargo may also have roots in various place names found throughout Scotland, such as Fargo in Ayrshire or Forgue in Aberdeenshire. These locations could have influenced the surname's spelling and pronunciation over time.

Notable individuals with the surname Fargo include William George Fargo (1818-1881), an American entrepreneur and co-founder of the Wells Fargo Express Company, which later became the banking and financial services company Wells Fargo. Another prominent figure was James Fargo (1737-1835), a Scottish-American soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War.

Other historical figures bearing the Fargo surname include John Fargo (1670-1754), an early American settler and landowner in Connecticut, and James Fargo (1808-1874), a Scottish-born Canadian politician and businessman who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada.

It is also worth noting that the city of Fargo in North Dakota was named after William Fargo, the co-founder of Wells Fargo Express Company, further cementing the surname's place in American history and geography.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Fargo

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Fargo.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Fargo was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Fargo has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Fargo was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Fargo, please contact us.

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