2000
#6,453
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,851
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.80
Rare Last name
Harriman
From an English place name meaning "stone boundary" or "boundary stone," or referring to someone living near one.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,185 Americans carry the last name Harriman. That puts it at #7,124 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.51 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 66,105 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Harriman 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 Harriman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.2K
1 in 66,105
Census rank
#7,124
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,522 bearers of the surname Harriman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.51 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7124th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Harriman, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Harriman
The surname Harriman is of English origin and dates back to the 16th century. It is believed to have originated in the county of Hampshire, derived from the Old English words "hær" meaning army or warrior, and "mann" meaning man. As such, it was likely an occupational name given to a soldier or warrior.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name can be found in the parish records of St. Michael's Church in Southampton, where a Thomas Harriman was christened in 1587. Another early reference is in the Subsidy Rolls of Hampshire from 1628, which list a John Harriman as a resident of the village of Romsey.
In the 17th century, the Harriman family appears to have spread to other parts of southern England, with records showing bearers of the name in the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset. One notable individual from this era was Edward Harriman (1631-1689), a merchant and ship owner from the port town of Poole.
The 18th and 19th centuries saw the Harriman name continuing to flourish, with several individuals achieving notable status. Among them was Benjamin Harriman (1756-1823), a prominent banker and financier in London. Another was Edward Avery Harriman (1848-1909), an American railroad executive and financier who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of the Northern Pacific Railroad.
Other notable individuals with the surname Harriman include James Harriman (1820-1897), an English architect who designed several notable buildings in London, and Walter Harriman (1917-1998), an American diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Nigeria in the 1960s.
Throughout its history, the Harriman surname has also been recorded with various alternate spellings, such as Hariman, Haryman, and Harriman, reflecting the evolving nature of English spelling and pronunciation over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Harriman
Among Census respondents with the surname Harriman, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Harriman 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 Harriman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.2% · 4,079
- Two or more races4.2% · 191
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 143
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 60
- Black or African American0.6% · 27
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 22
Timeline
Historical Census data for Harriman
Harriman 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
#6,694
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,045
+194 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 1.71
Rank movement Down 241 places
2020
#7,124
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,522
-523 bearers (-10.4%)
Per 100,000 1.51
Rank movement Down 430 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,453 | 4,851 | 1.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,694 | 5,045 | 1.71 | +194 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 241 places |
| 2020 | #7,124 | 4,522 | 1.51 | -523 bearers (-10.4%) | Down 430 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 Harriman 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 | #6,694 | #7,124 | -6.4% |
| Count | 5,045 | 4,522 | -10.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.71 | 1.51 | -11.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Harriman bearers went from 5,045 to 4,522 (-10.4% change). The surname moved down 430 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,694 to #7,124.
FAQ
Harriman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Harriman?
Name Census estimates that about 5,185 living Americans carry the surname Harriman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 66,105 residents.
How common is Harriman?
Harriman ranks #7,124 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.51 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 4,522 people with the surname Harriman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,185), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.51 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.51 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 Harriman.
Has Harriman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Harriman went from 5,045 recorded bearers to 4,522. That is a decrease of 523 (-10.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,694 to #7,124.
What does the Census say about the background of Harriman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Harriman, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Harriman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.2% (4,079 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Harriman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.2%), Two or More Races (4.2%), Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Harriman (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 Harriman mean?
From an English place name meaning "stone boundary" or "boundary stone," or referring to someone living near one. 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 Harriman (1.51 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 Harriman?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.