Find out how popular the last name Harness is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Harness.

Harness, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Harness surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Harness in America

Harness is the 6346th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Harness surname appeared 5,371 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Harness.

We can also compare 2010 data for Harness to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Harness

The surname Harness is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "hirse" meaning "a bristle or hair", and "hors" meaning "a horse". The name likely emerged in the 11th or 12th century and referred to a maker or seller of horse harnesses or trappings.

One of the earliest known records of the surname Harness dates back to the 13th century, appearing in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273 as "William le Herneyser". This early spelling variation highlights the occupation-based origins of the name.

Another early mention of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296, where it is recorded as "Robert le Harneys". This further solidifies the connection between the surname and the profession of harness-making.

In the 14th century, the surname was also recorded in various forms, such as "William le Harneysere" in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327, and "Roger Herneys" in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1332.

One notable historical figure bearing the surname Harness was Sir William Harness (1514-1567), an English merchant and politician who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1554 and 1555. Another prominent individual was Sir Henry Harness (1623-1694), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Thetford in the late 17th century.

In the 18th century, the surname was also associated with several notable figures, including William Harness (1790-1869), an English writer and clergyman, and Henry Harness (1804-1884), an English theologian and author.

Another figure of note was Sir Henry Drury Harness (1804-1885), an English judge and legal writer, who served as a Justice of the Queen's Bench.

In the 19th century, the surname Harness was also associated with several noteworthy individuals, including John Harness (1824-1900), an English cricketer who played for Sussex and England, and George Harness (1861-1939), an English footballer who played for West Bromwich Albion.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Harness

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Harness.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Harness was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Harness has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Harness was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Harness, please contact us.

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