2000
#8,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,471
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.29
Rare Last name
Freer
An occupational surname for someone who made or repaired saddles, from the Old French "fretier" meaning saddler.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,847 Americans carry the last name Freer. That puts it at #9,307 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 89,097 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Freer 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 Freer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.8K
1 in 89,097
Census rank
#9,307
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,355 bearers of the surname Freer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9307th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Freer, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Freer
The surname FREER is of English origin and dates back to the late medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "freo," meaning "free" or "freeman." This suggests that the name may have originally been given as a descriptive name to someone who was not bound to the feudal system or owned their own land.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where a John le Frere is mentioned in Oxfordshire. The spelling variations during this time included Frere, Fryer, and Fryer. These variants likely emerged due to the interchange of the letters "e" and "y" in Middle English.
The FREER surname is also associated with various place names in England, such as Frere in Norfolk and Fryers Court in Oxfordshire. These place names may have contributed to the development of the surname in their respective regions.
Notable individuals with the surname FREER include Charles Lang Freer (1856-1919), an American industrialist and art collector whose extensive collection formed the basis for the Freer Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Another prominent figure was Martha Walker Freer (1822-1888), an American missionary and educator who established schools for girls in India.
In the literary world, Marguerite Freer (1887-1968) was a British novelist and playwright known for her works set in the Middle East. Edward Freer (1880-1964) was an English cricketer who played for Gloucestershire County Cricket Club in the early 20th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the FREER surname can be traced back to the Pipe Rolls of 1176, which mention a Ralph le Frere in Oxfordshire. This further solidifies the name's origins in medieval England.
While the FREER surname may have started as a descriptive name for individuals who were "free" from feudal obligations, it eventually became a hereditary surname passed down through generations, with various spellings and associations emerging over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Freer
Among Census respondents with the surname Freer, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Freer 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 Freer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.4% · 2,900
- Hispanic or Latino5.1% · 170
- Two or more races4.2% · 141
- Black or African American2.6% · 87
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 44
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Freer
Freer 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
#8,917
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,671
+200 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 1.24
Rank movement Down 205 places
2020
#9,307
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,355
-316 bearers (-8.6%)
Per 100,000 1.12
Rank movement Down 390 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,712 | 3,471 | 1.29 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,917 | 3,671 | 1.24 | +200 bearers (+5.8%) | Down 205 places |
| 2020 | #9,307 | 3,355 | 1.12 | -316 bearers (-8.6%) | Down 390 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 Freer 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 | #8,917 | #9,307 | -4.4% |
| Count | 3,671 | 3,355 | -8.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.24 | 1.12 | -9.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Freer bearers went from 3,671 to 3,355 (-8.6% change). The surname moved down 390 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,917 to #9,307.
FAQ
Freer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Freer?
Name Census estimates that about 3,847 living Americans carry the surname Freer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 89,097 residents.
How common is Freer?
Freer ranks #9,307 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.12 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 3,355 people with the surname Freer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,847), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.12 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 Freer.
Has Freer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Freer went from 3,671 recorded bearers to 3,355. That is a decrease of 316 (-8.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,917 to #9,307.
What does the Census say about the background of Freer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Freer, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) 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 Freer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.4% (2,900 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Freer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.4%), Hispanic (5.1%), 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 Freer (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 Freer mean?
An occupational surname for someone who made or repaired saddles, from the Old French "fretier" meaning saddler. 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 Freer (1.12 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 share the surname Freer?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.