2000
#12,499
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,274
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Glasper
One who works with glass or is a glazier, derived from the Middle English word "glasper" or "glasseper."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,846 Americans carry the last name Glasper. That puts it at #12,010 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.83 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 120,434 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Glasper 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 Glasper with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.8K
1 in 120,434
Census rank
#12,010
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,482 bearers of the surname Glasper in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.83 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12010th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Glasper, the largest self-reported group is Black at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and White (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Glasper
The surname Glasper has its origins in the Scottish Borders region, emerging in the 13th century. It derives from the Old English words 'glæs' meaning 'glass' and 'pere' meaning 'pear', suggesting an association with someone who worked with glassmaking or lived near a pear-shaped hill. The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears as 'Gilaspard' in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a collection of homage pledges to Edward I of England.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir Thomas Glasper, a Scottish knight who fought alongside Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. Records also indicate a William Glasper who owned land near Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders in the late 14th century. The Glasper family later expanded their presence across Scotland and into northern England.
In the 16th century, the name Glasper appears in various forms, such as 'Glaspere' and 'Glaspair', in parish records and court documents from the Scottish Borders region. Notably, John Glasper, a merchant from Hawick, is mentioned in the Burgh Records of Selkirk in 1573.
During the 17th century, the Glasper name gained prominence in the Scottish Lowlands. Robert Glasper (1620-1678), a Presbyterian minister from East Lothian, was a prominent figure in the Covenanter movement and was imprisoned for his religious beliefs. In the same period, a branch of the Glasper family settled in Northumberland, England, where they established themselves as landowners and farmers.
In the 18th century, the name spread further across the British Isles. James Glasper (1745-1820), a Scottish engineer, made significant contributions to the development of early steam engines and worked closely with James Watt. In England, William Glasper (1771-1843), a renowned landscape painter, gained recognition for his depictions of rural scenes and coastal landscapes.
As the 19th century unfolded, the Glasper name continued to be associated with notable individuals. Sir John Glasper (1803-1879), a Scottish businessman and philanthropist, made his fortune in the textile industry and funded the construction of several schools and hospitals in Glasgow. Across the Atlantic, Mary Glasper (1832-1902), an American educator, played a pivotal role in establishing one of the first schools for African American children in Mississippi during the Reconstruction era.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Glasper
Among Census respondents with the surname Glasper, the largest self-reported group is Black at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and White (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Glasper 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 Glasper surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American85.3% · 2,118
- Two or more races6.2% · 154
- White4.7% · 116
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 85
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Glasper
Glasper 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
#11,821
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,647
+373 bearers (+16.4%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Up 678 places
2020
#12,010
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,482
-165 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 189 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,499 | 2,274 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,821 | 2,647 | 0.90 | +373 bearers (+16.4%) | Up 678 places |
| 2020 | #12,010 | 2,482 | 0.83 | -165 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 189 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 Glasper 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 | #11,821 | #12,010 | -1.6% |
| Count | 2,647 | 2,482 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.90 | 0.83 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Glasper bearers went from 2,647 to 2,482 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 189 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,821 to #12,010.
FAQ
Glasper surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Glasper?
Name Census estimates that about 2,846 living Americans carry the surname Glasper. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 120,434 residents.
How common is Glasper?
Glasper ranks #12,010 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.83 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 2,482 people with the surname Glasper. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,846), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.83 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.83 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 Glasper.
Has Glasper become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Glasper went from 2,647 recorded bearers to 2,482. That is a decrease of 165 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,821 to #12,010.
What does the Census say about the background of Glasper?
Among Census respondents with the surname Glasper, the largest self-reported group is Black at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and White (4.7%). 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 Glasper in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.3% (2,118 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Glasper appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (85.3%), Two or More Races (6.2%), White (4.7%). 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 Glasper (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 Glasper mean?
One who works with glass or is a glazier, derived from the Middle English word "glasper" or "glasseper." 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 Glasper (0.83 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 Glasper?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.