2000
#6,088
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,201
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.93
Rare Last name
Groom
An occupational surname referring to a stable worker who tends to horses or a bridegroom.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,637 Americans carry the last name Groom. That puts it at #6,609 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.64 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 60,804 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Groom 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 Groom with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.6K
1 in 60,804
Census rank
#6,609
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,916 bearers of the surname Groom in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.64 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6609th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Groom, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Groom
The surname GROOM originated in England during the Anglo-Saxon period, deriving from the Old English word "groma" which referred to a male servant or attendant. This occupational surname was initially given to individuals employed as grooms, responsible for tending to horses and stable duties.
GROOM is believed to have first appeared in historical records during the 11th century, notably in the Domesday Book of 1086, which documented landholdings and populations in England after the Norman Conquest. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Willelmus le Grom, listed in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1195.
Throughout the Middle Ages, variations of the surname emerged, such as Grome, Grom, and Groome, reflecting regional dialects and spelling conventions of the time. The name was particularly prevalent in counties like Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, and Nottinghamshire, where many families bore the GROOM surname.
Notable individuals bearing the GROOM surname include John Groom (1586-1670), an English Puritan clergyman and member of the Westminster Assembly, and Samuel Groom (1638-1683), an English merchant and politician who served as Sheriff of London in 1677. Another prominent figure was Francis Groom (1677-1736), an English churchman who became the Bishop of Cloyne in Ireland.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the GROOM surname was also found in various locations across England, such as the villages of Groom's Hill in Kent and Groom's Farm in Somerset, indicating the presence of families with this occupational name in those areas.
One of the earliest instances of the surname in America can be traced back to John Groom, who arrived in Virginia in 1635, and his descendants later settled in other parts of the colonies. Another notable bearer was William Groom (1789-1858), an English-born American politician who served as the 14th Governor of Connecticut from 1843 to 1844.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Groom
Among Census respondents with the surname Groom, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Groom 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 Groom surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.6% · 4,060
- Black or African American9.6% · 474
- Two or more races3.7% · 182
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 146
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 40
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Groom
Groom 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
#6,623
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,114
-87 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 1.73
Rank movement Down 535 places
2020
#6,609
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,916
-198 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 1.64
Rank movement Up 14 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,088 | 5,201 | 1.93 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,623 | 5,114 | 1.73 | -87 bearers (-1.7%) | Down 535 places |
| 2020 | #6,609 | 4,916 | 1.64 | -198 bearers (-3.9%) | Up 14 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 Groom 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 | #6,623 | #6,609 | 0.2% |
| Count | 5,114 | 4,916 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.73 | 1.64 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Groom bearers went from 5,114 to 4,916 (-3.9% change). The surname moved up 14 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,623 to #6,609.
FAQ
Groom surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Groom?
Name Census estimates that about 5,637 living Americans carry the surname Groom. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 60,804 residents.
How common is Groom?
Groom ranks #6,609 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.64 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 4,916 people with the surname Groom. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,637), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.64 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.64 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 Groom.
Has Groom become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Groom went from 5,114 recorded bearers to 4,916. That is a decrease of 198 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,623 to #6,609.
What does the Census say about the background of Groom?
Among Census respondents with the surname Groom, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Groom in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.6% (4,060 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Groom appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.6%), Black (9.6%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Groom (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 Groom mean?
An occupational surname referring to a stable worker who tends to horses or a bridegroom. 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 Groom (1.64 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 Groom?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.