2000
#5,344
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,002
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.22
Rare Last name
Harbison
Son of Harbye, a nickname for someone with a gray or pale complexion, from Old Norse "hár" meaning "gray-haired."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,627 Americans carry the last name Harbison. That puts it at #5,776 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.93 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,721 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Harbison 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 Harbison with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.6K
1 in 51,721
Census rank
#5,776
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,779 bearers of the surname Harbison in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.93 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5776th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbison, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.0%. The next largest groups are Black (7.1%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Harbison
The surname Harbison originated in Scotland during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old English words "hærbyrig" and "tun," meaning "army town" or "military settlement." This suggests that the Harbisons were likely descendants of a group of soldiers or warriors who settled in a particular area.
The name first appeared in historical records around the 12th century, with variations in spelling such as Harbyson, Harbertson, and Harbertoun. One of the earliest recorded instances is in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which listed Scottish nobles who swore fealty to King Edward I of England.
In the 14th century, the Harbisons were prominent landowners in the Scottish Borders region, particularly in the counties of Roxburghshire and Berwickshire. Some of the earliest documented Harbisons include John Harbison, who witnessed a charter in Roxburghshire in 1357, and William Harbison, who was granted lands in Berwickshire in 1392.
Throughout the centuries, the Harbisons played a significant role in Scottish history, with several notable individuals bearing the name. One such figure was Sir Robert Harbison, a Scottish knight who fought alongside William Wallace in the Wars of Scottish Independence in the late 13th century.
Another notable Harbison was John Harbison, a Scottish clergyman who lived in the 16th century. He was a prominent figure in the Scottish Reformation and played a key role in establishing Presbyterianism in Scotland.
In the 17th century, the Harbisons began to migrate to Ulster, Ireland, during the Plantation of Ulster. This led to the establishment of several Harbison families in counties such as Antrim and Down.
One of the most famous Harbisons was James Harbison, an Irish-born Presbyterian minister who emigrated to America in the early 18th century. He was a prominent figure in the Great Awakening religious revival and played a significant role in the establishment of Princeton University.
Other notable Harbisons throughout history include Robert Harbison, an American architect and author who lived in the 19th century, and John Harbison, a contemporary American composer and winner of the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1987.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Harbison
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbison, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.0%. The next largest groups are Black (7.1%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Harbison 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 Harbison surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.0% · 4,912
- Black or African American7.1% · 411
- Two or more races3.6% · 209
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 184
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 34
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 29
Timeline
Historical Census data for Harbison
Harbison 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
#5,598
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,215
+213 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 2.11
Rank movement Down 254 places
2020
#5,776
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,779
-436 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 1.93
Rank movement Down 178 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,344 | 6,002 | 2.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,598 | 6,215 | 2.11 | +213 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 254 places |
| 2020 | #5,776 | 5,779 | 1.93 | -436 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 178 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 Harbison 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 | #5,598 | #5,776 | -3.2% |
| Count | 6,215 | 5,779 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.11 | 1.93 | -8.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Harbison bearers went from 6,215 to 5,779 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 178 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,598 to #5,776.
FAQ
Harbison surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Harbison?
Name Census estimates that about 6,627 living Americans carry the surname Harbison. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,721 residents.
How common is Harbison?
Harbison ranks #5,776 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.93 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 5,779 people with the surname Harbison. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,627), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.93 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.93 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 Harbison.
Has Harbison become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Harbison went from 6,215 recorded bearers to 5,779. That is a decrease of 436 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,598 to #5,776.
What does the Census say about the background of Harbison?
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbison, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.0%. The next largest groups are Black (7.1%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Harbison in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.0% (4,912 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Harbison appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.0%), Black (7.1%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Harbison (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 Harbison mean?
Son of Harbye, a nickname for someone with a gray or pale complexion, from Old Norse "hár" meaning "gray-haired." 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 Harbison (1.93 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 Harbison?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.