2000
#12,260
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,328
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.86
Rare Last name
Howey
Derived from a place name meaning "hill island" in Old English, or referring to someone who lived on a hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,676 Americans carry the last name Howey. That puts it at #12,630 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 128,085 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Howey 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 Howey with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 128,085
Census rank
#12,630
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,334 bearers of the surname Howey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12630th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Howey, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Howey
The surname Howey has its origins in the British Isles, likely originating in Scotland or Northern England during the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old English word "hoh," meaning a heel or ridge, and may have referred to someone who lived near a prominent hill or ridge.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Howey can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a record of Scottish landowners who swore fealty to King Edward I of England. This suggests that the surname was already well-established in Scotland by the late 13th century.
In the 16th century, the Howey surname appears in various records in the Scottish Lowlands, particularly in the counties of Ayrshire and Renfrewshire. It is possible that the name was associated with the settlement of Howwood, a village located in Renfrewshire, which may have been named after a prominent local landmark.
Notable individuals with the surname Howey include James Howey (1847-1938), a Scottish-born Australian politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland in the late 19th century. Another prominent figure was Sir James Howey (1848-1925), a Scottish-born architect and civil engineer who worked extensively in South Africa and was knighted for his contributions to the country's infrastructure.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Howey is that of Robert Howey (1748-1820), an Irish-born settler who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later became a prominent landowner in Pennsylvania.
Another notable American with the surname Howey was Frank Howey (1885-1964), a journalist and publisher from Ohio who founded the renowned Howey Political Report, a respected publication that covered political affairs in the United States for several decades.
Throughout history, the Howey surname has been subject to various spellings, including Howie, Howye, and Houghy, reflecting the regional variations and phonetic adaptations that often occurred with surnames in the past.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Howey
Among Census respondents with the surname Howey, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Howey 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 Howey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.0% · 2,054
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 92
- Two or more races3.6% · 85
- Black or African American2.9% · 67
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Howey
Howey 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
#12,500
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,480
+152 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 240 places
2020
#12,630
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,334
-146 bearers (-5.9%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 130 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,260 | 2,328 | 0.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,500 | 2,480 | 0.84 | +152 bearers (+6.5%) | Down 240 places |
| 2020 | #12,630 | 2,334 | 0.78 | -146 bearers (-5.9%) | Down 130 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 Howey 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 | #12,500 | #12,630 | -1.0% |
| Count | 2,480 | 2,334 | -5.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.84 | 0.78 | -7.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Howey bearers went from 2,480 to 2,334 (-5.9% change). The surname moved down 130 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,500 to #12,630.
FAQ
Howey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Howey?
Name Census estimates that about 2,676 living Americans carry the surname Howey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 128,085 residents.
How common is Howey?
Howey ranks #12,630 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.78 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 2,334 people with the surname Howey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,676), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.78 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 Howey.
Has Howey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Howey went from 2,480 recorded bearers to 2,334. That is a decrease of 146 (-5.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,500 to #12,630.
What does the Census say about the background of Howey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Howey, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Howey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.0% (2,054 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Howey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.0%), Hispanic (3.9%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Howey (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 Howey mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "hill island" in Old English, or referring to someone who lived on a hill. 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 Howey (0.78 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 Americans have the surname Howey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.