2000
#9,123
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,290
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.22
Rare Last name
Higbee
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "high hill" or "high dwelling."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,593 Americans carry the last name Higbee. That puts it at #9,852 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 95,395 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Higbee 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 Higbee with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.6K
1 in 95,395
Census rank
#9,852
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,133 bearers of the surname Higbee in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9852nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Higbee, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Higbee
The surname Higbee is believed to have originated in England, possibly deriving from the Old English words "heg" or "hegge," meaning "hedge," and "by," meaning "village" or "farmstead." This suggests that the name may have referred to someone who lived near a hedge or in a hedged village or farm.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Higberie." This entry refers to a location in the county of Buckinghamshire, which may have been the place of origin for some bearers of the surname.
During the medieval period, the name was also spelled in various ways, such as "Higby," "Higbie," and "Higbey." These variations were likely due to regional dialects and the inconsistencies in spelling and record-keeping at the time.
Notable individuals with the surname Higbee include:
1. William Higbee (1810-1884), an early convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
2. Elias Higbee (1795-1843), a Mormon pioneer and one of the first settlers in Nauvoo, Illinois.
3. John Somers Higbee (1804-1876), a prominent Mormon leader and businessman in Nauvoo.
4. Edwin Higbee (1832-1919), an American politician who served as a member of the Utah Territorial Legislature.
5. Arthur Higbee (1888-1958), an American baseball player who played for the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees.
The surname Higbee has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Higbee Hill in Hertfordshire and Higbee Farm in Warwickshire, further reinforcing its connection to the concept of a hedged or enclosed area.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Higbee
Among Census respondents with the surname Higbee, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Higbee 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 Higbee surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.2% · 2,795
- Two or more races4.4% · 138
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 116
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 36
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 28
- Black or African American0.6% · 20
Timeline
Historical Census data for Higbee
Higbee 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
#9,672
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,355
+65 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 1.14
Rank movement Down 549 places
2020
#9,852
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,133
-222 bearers (-6.6%)
Per 100,000 1.05
Rank movement Down 180 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,123 | 3,290 | 1.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,672 | 3,355 | 1.14 | +65 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 549 places |
| 2020 | #9,852 | 3,133 | 1.05 | -222 bearers (-6.6%) | Down 180 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 Higbee 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 | #9,672 | #9,852 | -1.9% |
| Count | 3,355 | 3,133 | -6.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.14 | 1.05 | -8.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Higbee bearers went from 3,355 to 3,133 (-6.6% change). The surname moved down 180 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,672 to #9,852.
FAQ
Higbee surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Higbee?
Name Census estimates that about 3,593 living Americans carry the surname Higbee. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 95,395 residents.
How common is Higbee?
Higbee ranks #9,852 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.05 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 3,133 people with the surname Higbee. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,593), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.05 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 Higbee.
Has Higbee become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Higbee went from 3,355 recorded bearers to 3,133. That is a decrease of 222 (-6.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,672 to #9,852.
What does the Census say about the background of Higbee?
Among Census respondents with the surname Higbee, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (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 Higbee in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.2% (2,795 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Higbee appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.2%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Hispanic (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 Higbee (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 Higbee mean?
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "high hill" or "high dwelling." 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 Higbee (1.05 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 Higbee?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.