2000
#5,592
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,697
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.11
Rare Last name
Fogg
An occupational surname for someone who bred, raised, or sold birds, or a nickname for an eccentric person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,023 Americans carry the last name Fogg. That puts it at #6,246 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 56,908 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fogg 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 Fogg with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.0K
1 in 56,908
Census rank
#6,246
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,252 bearers of the surname Fogg in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6246th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fogg, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fogg
The surname Fogg is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "fog" meaning "long grass" or "aftermath." It is believed to have originated as a topographic name, referring to someone who lived near an area with long grass or a meadow.
The earliest recorded instance of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "de Fogga." This entry suggests that the name was used as a locational surname, referring to someone from a place called Fogg or Fogga.
In the 13th century, the name is found in various records as "Fogge" and "Fogghe." During this time, it was particularly prevalent in the counties of Lincolnshire and Norfolk.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was William Fogge, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1188. Another notable figure was Sir John Fogge, a prominent English soldier and landowner who lived in the 14th century.
In the 16th century, the name was sometimes associated with the place name "Foggathorp" or "Foggathorp," which was a hamlet in Lincolnshire. This connection suggests that some bearers of the Fogg surname may have originated from this specific location.
A famous individual with the surname Fogg was Sir John Fogg, an English diplomat and Member of Parliament during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He was born in 1534 and died in 1590.
Another notable bearer of the name was Thomas Fogg, a 17th-century English clergyman and author. He was born in 1616 and published several religious works, including "The Mariner's Companion" and "A Prospect of the Heavenly Inheritance."
In the 18th century, the surname Fogg was associated with Robert Fogg, a renowned clockmaker and inventor from Newcastle upon Tyne. He lived from 1714 to 1788 and was known for his innovative clock designs.
During the 19th century, one of the most famous individuals with the surname Fogg was Phileas Fogg, the fictional protagonist of Jules Verne's novel "Around the World in Eighty Days," published in 1873. Although a fictional character, Phileas Fogg has become a recognizable name associated with the Fogg surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fogg
Among Census respondents with the surname Fogg, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Fogg 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 Fogg surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.2% · 4,107
- Black or African American13.4% · 702
- Two or more races4.2% · 219
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 149
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 44
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 31
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fogg
Fogg 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
#6,052
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,669
-28 bearers (-0.5%)
Per 100,000 1.92
Rank movement Down 460 places
2020
#6,246
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,252
-417 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 1.76
Rank movement Down 194 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,592 | 5,697 | 2.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,052 | 5,669 | 1.92 | -28 bearers (-0.5%) | Down 460 places |
| 2020 | #6,246 | 5,252 | 1.76 | -417 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 194 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 Fogg 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 | #6,052 | #6,246 | -3.2% |
| Count | 5,669 | 5,252 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.92 | 1.76 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fogg bearers went from 5,669 to 5,252 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 194 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,052 to #6,246.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Fogg
FAQ
Fogg surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fogg?
Name Census estimates that about 6,023 living Americans carry the surname Fogg. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 56,908 residents.
How common is Fogg?
Fogg ranks #6,246 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.76 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,252 people with the surname Fogg. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,023), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.76 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Fogg.
Has Fogg become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fogg went from 5,669 recorded bearers to 5,252. That is a decrease of 417 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,052 to #6,246.
What does the Census say about the background of Fogg?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fogg, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (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 Fogg in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.2% (4,107 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fogg appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.2%), Black (13.4%), Two or More Races (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 Fogg (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 Fogg mean?
An occupational surname for someone who bred, raised, or sold birds, or a nickname for an eccentric person. 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 Fogg (1.76 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 common is the surname Fogg?
Find out how many people have the surname Fogg on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.