2000
#8,567
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,539
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.31
Rare Last name
Hollon
Derived from a place name meaning "hollow" or "deep valley" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,940 Americans carry the last name Hollon. That puts it at #9,131 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 86,993 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hollon 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 Hollon with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.9K
1 in 86,993
Census rank
#9,131
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,436 bearers of the surname Hollon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9131st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollon, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hollon
The surname Hollon is believed to have originated in England, derived from the Old English words 'hol' meaning 'hollow' and 'dun' meaning 'hill'. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near a hollow or depression in a hill.
Variations of the spelling, such as Hollon, Hollond, and Hollen, can be found in historical records dating back to the 13th century. One of the earliest documented instances of the name is in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which mentions a John de Holonde from Lincolnshire.
During the medieval period, the Hollon surname appeared to be concentrated in the counties of Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, and Yorkshire. In the Subsidy Rolls of 1327, there are records of a Robert Hollon and a William Hollon, both residing in Nottinghamshire.
The Hollon name is also associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One such figure is Sir John Hollon, a prominent merchant and Lord Mayor of London in the late 15th century (born circa 1440). Another is William Hollon, an English writer and translator who lived during the 16th century (born around 1520).
In the 17th century, a branch of the Hollon family established themselves in Virginia, with records showing a Robert Hollon arriving in the colony in 1635. This line of the family later produced several notable figures, including Colonel John Hollon, a Revolutionary War officer (1730-1804), and Reverend Levi Hollon, a Baptist minister and educator (1792-1874).
Other historical figures bearing the Hollon surname include Samuel Hollon, an English inventor and engineer who patented several innovations in the late 18th century (born around 1760), and Mary Hollon, a British novelist and poet active in the early 19th century (born circa 1790).
While the Hollon name has evolved in spelling and geographic distribution over the centuries, its origins can be traced back to the rolling hills of medieval England, reflecting the connection between place and identity that is often found in surnames.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hollon
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollon, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Hollon 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 Hollon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.1% · 3,097
- Two or more races4.3% · 149
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 102
- Black or African American1.4% · 48
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hollon
Hollon 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
#8,885
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,686
+147 bearers (+4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Down 318 places
2020
#9,131
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,436
-250 bearers (-6.8%)
Per 100,000 1.15
Rank movement Down 246 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,567 | 3,539 | 1.31 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,885 | 3,686 | 1.25 | +147 bearers (+4.2%) | Down 318 places |
| 2020 | #9,131 | 3,436 | 1.15 | -250 bearers (-6.8%) | Down 246 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 Hollon 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 | #8,885 | #9,131 | -2.8% |
| Count | 3,686 | 3,436 | -6.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.25 | 1.15 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hollon bearers went from 3,686 to 3,436 (-6.8% change). The surname moved down 246 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,885 to #9,131.
FAQ
Hollon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hollon?
Name Census estimates that about 3,940 living Americans carry the surname Hollon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 86,993 residents.
How common is Hollon?
Hollon ranks #9,131 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.15 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 3,436 people with the surname Hollon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,940), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.15 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 Hollon.
Has Hollon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hollon went from 3,686 recorded bearers to 3,436. That is a decrease of 250 (-6.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,885 to #9,131.
What does the Census say about the background of Hollon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollon, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Hollon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.1% (3,097 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hollon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.1%), Two or More Races (4.3%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Hollon (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 Hollon mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "hollow" or "deep valley" in Old English. 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 Hollon (1.15 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 Hollon?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.