2010
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Froud
An Old English surname derived from "frod", meaning wise or prudent.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Froud. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Froud 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 Froud with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Froud in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Froud, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Froud
The surname Froud is of English origin and dates back to the 13th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English word "frod," which means wise or learned. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, where it appears as "Frod."
In the 14th century, the name was also recorded in various forms such as "Froud," "Frode," and "Froude." These variations were likely due to the inconsistencies in spelling and pronunciation during that time period. The name was primarily concentrated in the counties of Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, and Somerset in the southwestern region of England.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Froud, a prominent landowner in Somerset who lived in the late 14th century. His name appears in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1379.
Another historical figure with the surname Froud was William Froud, a clergyman who lived in Gloucestershire in the late 16th century. He was the rector of Cirencester from 1580 until his death in 1607.
In the 17th century, the name Froud is associated with the village of Froud's Green in Gloucestershire, which likely derived its name from a family with the same surname who resided in the area.
One notable individual from this period was Richard Froud, a wealthy merchant and landowner who lived in Bristol in the late 1600s. He was involved in the city's thriving trade with the Americas and the West Indies.
In the 18th century, the surname Froud was also found in various parts of Devon and Cornwall. One notable bearer was John Froud, a renowned painter and engraver who was born in Devon in 1759. His works were highly regarded and can be found in several prestigious art collections.
Throughout the 19th century, the surname Froud continued to be prevalent in southwestern England, particularly in the counties of Somerset, Gloucestershire, and Wiltshire. Some notable individuals from this period include James Froud, a prominent banker and philanthropist from Bath who lived from 1810 to 1892, and William Froud, a respected architect and surveyor from Bristol who was born in 1830.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Froud
Among Census respondents with the surname Froud, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Froud 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 Froud surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.2% · 93
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 4
- Two or more races3.9% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Froud
Froud appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-9 bearers (-8.1%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 6,408 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -9 bearers (-8.1%) | Down 6,408 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 Froud 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 | #148,347 | #154,755 | -4.3% |
| Count | 111 | 102 | -8.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -14.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Froud bearers went from 111 to 102 (-8.1% change). The surname moved down 6,408 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #154,755.
FAQ
Froud surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Froud?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Froud. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Froud?
Froud ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 102 people with the surname Froud. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Froud.
Has Froud become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Froud went from 111 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 9 (-8.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #148,347 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Froud?
Among Census respondents with the surname Froud, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Froud in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.2% (93 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Froud appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.2%), Hispanic (3.9%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Froud (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 Froud mean?
An Old English surname derived from "frod", meaning wise or prudent. 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 Froud (0.03 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 Americans have the surname Froud?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.