2000
#7,657
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,006
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.49
Rare Last name
Harbour
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a harbor or port.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,463 Americans carry the last name Harbour. That puts it at #8,142 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.30 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 76,799 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Harbour 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 Harbour with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.5K
1 in 76,799
Census rank
#8,142
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,892 bearers of the surname Harbour in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.30 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8142nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbour, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are Black (8.9%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Harbour
The surname Harbour is of English and Norman-French origin, deriving from the Old French word 'herbor', meaning a shelter or lodging. It first emerged in the 11th century, shortly after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.
The name likely referred to someone who lived near a harbour or port, or possibly an innkeeper who provided lodging for travelers. Early spellings of the name include Herbour, Harbur, and Herbergh.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Harbour surname is found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which lists a Robert de Herberga in Gloucestershire. This suggests the name had already established itself in England by the late 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, the Harbour name was particularly concentrated in the coastal regions of southern England, such as Devon, Dorset, and Cornwall, reflecting the maritime connections of the name.
Notable individuals with the Harbour surname include John Harbour (c.1455-1529), a wealthy merchant and Member of Parliament for Bristol; Sir Nicholas Harbour (1547-1615), an English naval commander who served under Sir Francis Drake; and Mary Harbour (1668-1734), an English Quaker missionary who traveled extensively throughout the American colonies.
In the 17th century, the surname spread to Ireland, where it appeared in records as Harbour and Harbor. One prominent Irish bearer was Thomas Harbour (1730-1806), a Protestant minister and author from County Down.
Other notable Harbours include William Harbour (1820-1905), an English architect responsible for designing several churches and public buildings in London; and Sir Michael Harbour (1938-2017), a British diplomat who served as Ambassador to Turkey and Saudi Arabia.
The geographical concentrations and occupational connections of the Harbour name reflect its origins as a locative surname, tied to the maritime and coastal regions of medieval England and later Ireland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Harbour
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbour, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are Black (8.9%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Harbour 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 Harbour surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.2% · 3,237
- Black or African American8.9% · 346
- Two or more races3.8% · 146
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 108
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 31
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 24
Timeline
Historical Census data for Harbour
Harbour 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
#7,964
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,155
+149 bearers (+3.7%)
Per 100,000 1.41
Rank movement Down 307 places
2020
#8,142
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,892
-263 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 1.30
Rank movement Down 178 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,657 | 4,006 | 1.49 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,964 | 4,155 | 1.41 | +149 bearers (+3.7%) | Down 307 places |
| 2020 | #8,142 | 3,892 | 1.30 | -263 bearers (-6.3%) | 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 Harbour 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 | #7,964 | #8,142 | -2.2% |
| Count | 4,155 | 3,892 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.41 | 1.30 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Harbour bearers went from 4,155 to 3,892 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 178 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,964 to #8,142.
FAQ
Harbour surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Harbour?
Name Census estimates that about 4,463 living Americans carry the surname Harbour. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 76,799 residents.
How common is Harbour?
Harbour ranks #8,142 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.30 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 3,892 people with the surname Harbour. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,463), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.3 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.30 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 Harbour.
Has Harbour become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Harbour went from 4,155 recorded bearers to 3,892. That is a decrease of 263 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,964 to #8,142.
What does the Census say about the background of Harbour?
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbour, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are Black (8.9%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Harbour in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.2% (3,237 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Harbour appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.2%), Black (8.9%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Harbour (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 Harbour mean?
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a harbor or port. 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 Harbour (1.30 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 have the last name Harbour?
Find out how many people have the last name Harbour on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.