2000
#986
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 32,228
First available Census row
Per 100,000 11.95
Uncommon Last name
Forbes
A Scottish surname referring to someone who came from a place near a ford or river crossing.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 38,328 Americans carry the last name Forbes. That puts it at #1,032 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 11.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 8,943 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Forbes 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 Forbes with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
38K
1 in 8,943
Census rank
#1,032
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
11.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
33K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 33,424 bearers of the surname Forbes in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 11.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1032nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Forbes, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.5%. The next largest groups are Black (23.0%) and Hispanic (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Forbes
The surname FORBES is of Scottish origin, derived from the lands of Forbes in Aberdeenshire. The name is believed to have originated from the Gaelic words "fòrch" meaning field and "baile" meaning town or settlement, suggesting the name translates to "the town among the fields".
The earliest recorded spelling of the surname is found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which lists Alanus de Forbes as a landowner who swore fealty to King Edward I of England. The name also appears in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1369 as "Williame Forbes".
The FORBES family played a prominent role in Scottish history, with their ancestral lands located near the River Don in Aberdeenshire. The family's power and influence grew significantly during the 16th and 17th centuries, with several members holding important positions in the Scottish government and military.
One notable figure was Alexander Forbes, 4th Lord Forbes (1537-1594), who was a Scottish nobleman and military commander. He fought against the English at the Battle of Pinkie in 1547 and later supported Mary, Queen of Scots during the Scottish Reformation.
Another distinguished member of the FORBES family was William Forbes (1585-1634), a Scottish bishop and theologian. He served as the Bishop of Edinburgh from 1634 until his death and was a respected figure in the Scottish Episcopal Church.
During the 18th century, the FORBES family continued to play a significant role in Scottish society. John Forbes (1714-1796) was a Scottish merchant and landowner who served as Lord Rector of the University of Glasgow from 1782 to 1784.
The name FORBES also has connections to the United States, with several notable individuals bearing the surname. One of the most famous was Malcolm Forbes (1919-1990), an American entrepreneur and publisher who served as the editor-in-chief of Forbes magazine.
In addition to these historical figures, the surname FORBES has been associated with various place names, including the town of Forbes in New South Wales, Australia, and the Forbes Range in Antarctica.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Forbes
Among Census respondents with the surname Forbes, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.5%. The next largest groups are Black (23.0%) and Hispanic (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Forbes 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 Forbes surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.5% · 22,211
- Black or African American23.0% · 7,685
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 1,588
- Two or more races4.2% · 1,419
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 358
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 163
Timeline
Historical Census data for Forbes
Forbes 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
#1,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 33,813
+1,585 bearers (+4.9%)
Per 100,000 11.46
Rank movement Down 42 places
2020
#1,032
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 33,424
-389 bearers (-1.2%)
Per 100,000 11.18
Rank movement Down 4 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #986 | 32,228 | 11.95 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,028 | 33,813 | 11.46 | +1,585 bearers (+4.9%) | Down 42 places |
| 2020 | #1,032 | 33,424 | 11.18 | -389 bearers (-1.2%) | Down 4 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 Forbes 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 | #1,028 | #1,032 | -0.4% |
| Count | 33,813 | 33,424 | -1.2% |
| Per 100K | 11.46 | 11.18 | -2.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Forbes bearers went from 33,813 to 33,424 (-1.2% change). The surname moved down 4 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,028 to #1,032.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Forbes
FAQ
Forbes surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Forbes?
Name Census estimates that about 38,328 living Americans carry the surname Forbes. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 8,943 residents.
How common is Forbes?
Forbes ranks #1,032 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 11.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 11 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 33,424 people with the surname Forbes. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (38,328), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 11.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 11.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 11 of them to have the surname Forbes.
Has Forbes become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Forbes went from 33,813 recorded bearers to 33,424. That is a decrease of 389 (-1.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,028 to #1,032.
What does the Census say about the background of Forbes?
Among Census respondents with the surname Forbes, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.5%. The next largest groups are Black (23.0%) and Hispanic (4.8%). 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 Forbes in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.5% (22,211 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Forbes appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (66.5%), Black (23.0%), Hispanic (4.8%). 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 Forbes (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 Forbes mean?
A Scottish surname referring to someone who came from a place near a ford or river crossing. 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 Forbes (11.18 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 Forbes?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Forbes at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.