2000
#5,476
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,839
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.16
Rare Last name
Humes
Derived from a place name meaning "river island" in Old English, or from the personal name Hugh.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,715 Americans carry the last name Humes. That puts it at #5,703 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.96 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,043 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Humes 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 Humes with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.7K
1 in 51,043
Census rank
#5,703
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,856 bearers of the surname Humes in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.96 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5703rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Humes, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.3%. The next largest groups are Black (25.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Humes
The surname Humes finds its origins in Scotland, tracing back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "hom," meaning a river meadow or low-lying land. The earliest known bearers of the name were from the region of Berwickshire, situated in the Scottish Borders.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which document a list of Scottish nobles who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. The rolls mention a "William de Hume" from Berwickshire. This suggests that the name was well-established in the region by the late 13th century.
The Humes were a prominent family in Scottish history, with several notable individuals bearing the name. One of the most renowned was Sir Patrick Hume (1641-1724), a Scottish politician and philosopher who played a significant role in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. He was a staunch supporter of the Protestant cause and advocated for religious tolerance in Scotland.
Another notable figure was David Hume (1711-1776), a Scottish philosopher, historian, and essayist who is widely regarded as one of the most influential thinkers of the Scottish Enlightenment. His works, such as "A Treatise of Human Nature" and "An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding," have had a lasting impact on Western philosophy.
The Humes also had a strong presence in the literary world. Alexander Hume (1560-1609) was a renowned Scottish poet and minister, known for his collection of religious poems titled "Hymnes, or Sacred Songs." Similarly, Joseph Hume (1777-1855) was a British politician and writer who advocated for parliamentary reform and the abolition of slavery.
Another prominent figure was Sir Everard Hume (1672-1743), a Scottish military officer who served as Governor of Madras in British India. He played a crucial role in strengthening the British presence in the region and is remembered for his contributions to the expansion of the East India Company's influence.
While the surname Humes has its roots in Scotland, it has since spread to various parts of the world, particularly to countries with strong Scottish heritage or colonial ties to the British Empire. However, it remains a prominent name in Scotland, where it continues to hold historical significance and cultural relevance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Humes
Among Census respondents with the surname Humes, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.3%. The next largest groups are Black (25.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Humes 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 Humes surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.3% · 3,881
- Black or African American25.2% · 1,474
- Two or more races4.8% · 281
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 163
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 38
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Humes
Humes 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
#5,689
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,093
+254 bearers (+4.4%)
Per 100,000 2.07
Rank movement Down 213 places
2020
#5,703
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,856
-237 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 1.96
Rank movement Down 14 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,476 | 5,839 | 2.16 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,689 | 6,093 | 2.07 | +254 bearers (+4.4%) | Down 213 places |
| 2020 | #5,703 | 5,856 | 1.96 | -237 bearers (-3.9%) | Down 14 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 Humes 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 | #5,689 | #5,703 | -0.2% |
| Count | 6,093 | 5,856 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 2.07 | 1.96 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Humes bearers went from 6,093 to 5,856 (-3.9% change). The surname moved down 14 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,689 to #5,703.
FAQ
Humes surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Humes?
Name Census estimates that about 6,715 living Americans carry the surname Humes. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,043 residents.
How common is Humes?
Humes ranks #5,703 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.96 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 5,856 people with the surname Humes. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,715), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.96 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.96 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 Humes.
Has Humes become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Humes went from 6,093 recorded bearers to 5,856. That is a decrease of 237 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,689 to #5,703.
What does the Census say about the background of Humes?
Among Census respondents with the surname Humes, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.3%. The next largest groups are Black (25.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Humes in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.3% (3,881 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Humes appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (66.3%), Black (25.2%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Humes (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 Humes mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "river island" in Old English, or from the personal name Hugh. 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 Humes (1.96 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 Humes?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.