2000
#4,514
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,233
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.68
Rare Last name
Grim
An English surname referring to a fierce or forbidding person, or derived from a place name meaning "mask".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,016 Americans carry the last name Grim. That puts it at #4,892 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 42,759 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Grim 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
8.0K
1 in 42,759
Census rank
#4,892
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,990 bearers of the surname Grim in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4892nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Grim, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Black (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Grim
The surname Grim originated in England during the Anglo-Saxon period. It is derived from the Old English word "grim," which means "fierce" or "stern." The name likely referred to someone with a grim or fierce countenance or demeanor.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Grim date back to the late 11th century. It appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of land ownership and taxation commissioned by William the Conqueror. The surname is also found in various medieval records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from the late 12th century.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Grim was Roger Grim, a 12th-century English churchman and biographer of Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury who was assassinated in 1170. Roger Grim was an eyewitness to Becket's murder and wrote an account of the event.
In the 13th century, the surname Grim was associated with various place names, such as Grimsby in Lincolnshire and Grimston in Norfolk. These place names likely influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname over time.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Grim. One example is Hans Grim (1490-1564), a Swiss Protestant Reformer and follower of Huldrych Zwingli. Another is Jakob Grim (1785-1863), a German philologist and one of the Brothers Grimm, famous for collecting and publishing folktales and fairy tales.
Other notable bearers of the surname Grim include:
1. John Grim (1677-1756), an English Baptist minister and hymnwriter.
2. Robert Grim (1832-1912), an American politician who served as the 13th Lieutenant Governor of Indiana.
3. William Grim (1836-1905), an American Civil War veteran and industrialist who founded the Grim Shipbuilding Corporation.
4. Edgar Grim (1899-1986), an American artist known for his landscape paintings and murals.
5. Elmer Grim (1918-2014), an American World War II veteran and recipient of the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Iwo Jima.
The surname Grim has a rich history and has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including religious figures, scholars, politicians, artists, and military heroes.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Grim
Among Census respondents with the surname Grim, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Black (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Grim 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 Grim surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.8% · 6,204
- Black or African American3.9% · 272
- Two or more races3.4% · 239
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 189
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 46
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 40
Timeline
Historical Census data for Grim
Grim 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
#4,771
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,418
+185 bearers (+2.6%)
Per 100,000 2.51
Rank movement Down 257 places
2020
#4,892
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,990
-428 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 2.34
Rank movement Down 121 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,514 | 7,233 | 2.68 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,771 | 7,418 | 2.51 | +185 bearers (+2.6%) | Down 257 places |
| 2020 | #4,892 | 6,990 | 2.34 | -428 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 121 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 Grim 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 | #4,771 | #4,892 | -2.5% |
| Count | 7,418 | 6,990 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 2.51 | 2.34 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Grim bearers went from 7,418 to 6,990 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 121 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,771 to #4,892.
FAQ
Grim surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Grim?
Name Census estimates that about 8,016 living Americans carry the surname Grim. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 42,759 residents.
How common is Grim?
Grim ranks #4,892 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.34 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,990 people with the surname Grim. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,016), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.34 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Grim.
Has Grim become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Grim went from 7,418 recorded bearers to 6,990. That is a decrease of 428 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,771 to #4,892.
What does the Census say about the background of Grim?
Among Census respondents with the surname Grim, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Black (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Grim in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.8% (6,204 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Grim appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.8%), Black (3.9%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Grim (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 Grim mean?
An English surname referring to a fierce or forbidding person, or derived from a place name meaning "mask". 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 Grim (2.34 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 common is the surname Grim?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Grim, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.