2000
#12,058
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,375
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Forshee
An English occupational surname referring to someone who lived or worked near a fort or stronghold.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,355 Americans carry the last name Forshee. That puts it at #14,048 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 145,543 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Forshee 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.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 145,543
Census rank
#14,048
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,054 bearers of the surname Forshee in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14048th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Forshee, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Forshee
The surname "FORSHEE" is believed to have originated in the region of England known as Yorkshire. Its earliest known roots can be traced back to the late 12th century, derived from the Old English words "fore" meaning "before" and "sche" meaning "woods" or "forest". This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who lived near or worked in the forested areas ahead of a particular village or town.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from the year 1208, where a man named Walter Forshey is listed as a landowner. It's possible that this spelling variation, "Forshey", was an early iteration of the modern "FORSHEE" surname.
In the 14th century, the name appears in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield, which documented legal proceedings in the area. A certain Richard Forshe is mentioned as being involved in a land dispute in the year 1327.
The surname may also have ties to the village of Forshill, located in the East Riding of Yorkshire. This place name, which dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, could have contributed to the development of the "FORSHEE" surname over time.
Notable individuals who have borne the "FORSHEE" surname throughout history include:
1. John Forshee (1634-1705), an early settler in the American colonies who emigrated from England to Virginia in the late 17th century.
2. William Forshee (1776-1854), an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Virginia between 1823 and 1825.
3. Sarah Forshee (1802-1883), an American pioneer and one of the first female settlers in the state of Texas, arriving in the 1830s.
4. Thomas Forshee (1848-1922), a British politician and Member of Parliament for the constituency of Louth from 1900 to 1906.
5. Margaret Forshee (1878-1961), an American author and poet who published several collections of works in the early 20th century.
The "FORSHEE" surname has endured for centuries, with its roots firmly planted in the historic landscapes of Yorkshire and its potential connections to the English countryside and forestry.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Forshee
Among Census respondents with the surname Forshee, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Forshee 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 Forshee surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.8% · 1,742
- Black or African American7.3% · 150
- Two or more races4.4% · 90
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 48
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Forshee
Forshee 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
#13,435
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,268
-107 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 1,377 places
2020
#14,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,054
-214 bearers (-9.4%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Down 613 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,058 | 2,375 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,435 | 2,268 | 0.77 | -107 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 1,377 places |
| 2020 | #14,048 | 2,054 | 0.69 | -214 bearers (-9.4%) | Down 613 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 Forshee 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 | #13,435 | #14,048 | -4.6% |
| Count | 2,268 | 2,054 | -9.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.77 | 0.69 | -10.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Forshee bearers went from 2,268 to 2,054 (-9.4% change). The surname moved down 613 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,435 to #14,048.
FAQ
Forshee surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Forshee?
Name Census estimates that about 2,355 living Americans carry the surname Forshee. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 145,543 residents.
How common is Forshee?
Forshee ranks #14,048 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.69 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 2,054 people with the surname Forshee. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,355), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.69 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 Forshee.
Has Forshee become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Forshee went from 2,268 recorded bearers to 2,054. That is a decrease of 214 (-9.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,435 to #14,048.
What does the Census say about the background of Forshee?
Among Census respondents with the surname Forshee, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Forshee in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.8% (1,742 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Forshee appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.8%), Black (7.3%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Forshee (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 Forshee mean?
An English occupational surname referring to someone who lived or worked near a fort or stronghold. 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 Forshee (0.69 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 people have the surname Forshee?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.