2000
#10,389
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,842
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.05
Rare Last name
Foxx
An English surname derived from the animal, likely referring to someone with fox-like characteristics or a fox hunter.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,637 Americans carry the last name Foxx. That puts it at #9,760 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 94,241 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Foxx 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
3.6K
1 in 94,241
Census rank
#9,760
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,172 bearers of the surname Foxx in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9760th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Foxx, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.0%. The next largest groups are White (42.7%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Foxx
The surname Foxx is of English origin, derived from a nickname for someone with a reddish or fox-like appearance. It dates back to the 13th century and is a variant of the Old English word "fox," which originally referred to the small, wild animal.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Foxx surname can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire, England, from 1273, where a William le Fox is mentioned. This early spelling reflects the common practice of adding the French preposition "le" before surnames at the time.
In the 14th century, the surname appeared in various forms, such as "le Foxe" and "Foxe," as seen in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1301 and the Feet of Fines records from 1349, respectively.
The Foxx surname was also associated with certain place names, like Foxholes and Foxhouses, found in Yorkshire and Durham. These place names likely derived from the Old English words "fox" and "hol" (hole) or "hus" (house), referring to areas where foxes were known to dwell.
Among notable individuals bearing the Foxx surname throughout history are:
1. Robert Foxx (c.1495-1554), an English clergyman and Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake during the reign of Queen Mary I.
2. Thomas Foxx (1586-1635), an English poet and translator known for his work "The Kingdome of Virginia" (1612).
3. John Foxx (born 1948), an English singer, songwriter, and founding member of the influential electronic music group Ultravox.
4. Redd Foxx (1922-1991), an American comedian and actor best known for his role in the television sitcom "Sanford and Son."
5. Jamie Foxx (born 1967), an Academy Award-winning American actor, comedian, and singer known for his roles in films like "Ray" and "Django Unchained."
The Foxx surname has a rich history dating back to medieval England, with various spellings and associations with certain geographical locations. While initially used as a descriptive nickname, it eventually became a hereditary surname passed down through generations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Foxx
Among Census respondents with the surname Foxx, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.0%. The next largest groups are White (42.7%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Foxx 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 Foxx surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American45.0% · 1,428
- White42.7% · 1,355
- Two or more races6.4% · 203
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 120
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 38
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 28
Timeline
Historical Census data for Foxx
Foxx 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
#10,445
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,080
+238 bearers (+8.4%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Down 56 places
2020
#9,760
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,172
+92 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 1.06
Rank movement Up 685 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,389 | 2,842 | 1.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,445 | 3,080 | 1.04 | +238 bearers (+8.4%) | Down 56 places |
| 2020 | #9,760 | 3,172 | 1.06 | +92 bearers (+3.0%) | Up 685 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 Foxx 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 | #10,445 | #9,760 | 6.6% |
| Count | 3,080 | 3,172 | 3.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.04 | 1.06 | 2.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Foxx bearers went from 3,080 to 3,172 (+3.0% change). The surname moved up 685 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,445 to #9,760.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Foxx
FAQ
Foxx surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Foxx?
Name Census estimates that about 3,637 living Americans carry the surname Foxx. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 94,241 residents.
How common is Foxx?
Foxx ranks #9,760 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.06 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 3,172 people with the surname Foxx. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,637), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.06 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 Foxx.
Has Foxx become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Foxx went from 3,080 recorded bearers to 3,172. That is an increase of 92 (+3.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,445 to #9,760.
What does the Census say about the background of Foxx?
Among Census respondents with the surname Foxx, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.0%. The next largest groups are White (42.7%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Foxx in the 2020 Census, accounting for 45.0% (1,428 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Foxx appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (45.0%), White (42.7%), Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Foxx (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 Foxx mean?
An English surname derived from the animal, likely referring to someone with fox-like characteristics or a fox hunter. 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 Foxx (1.06 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 are called Foxx?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Foxx on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.