2000
#2,376
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,990
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.19
Uncommon Last name
Jack
An occupational surname referring to someone who made or sold jackets or other outer garments.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 17,363 Americans carry the last name Jack. That puts it at #2,345 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 19,741 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Jack 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 Jack with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
17K
1 in 19,741
Census rank
#2,345
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,141 bearers of the surname Jack in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2345th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Jack, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.3%. The next largest groups are Black (29.4%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Jack
The surname Jack is an English surname derived from the medieval personal name John, which itself is derived from the Hebrew name Yohanan, meaning "Yahweh is gracious". The surname Jack originated as a diminutive or nickname form of the name John.
The earliest recorded use of the surname Jack dates back to the late 13th century in England. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275, which mentions a person named Roberd Jake.
The surname Jack has been found in various historical records throughout the centuries, including the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which lists a John Jake in Oxfordshire, and the Pipe Rolls of Norfolk from 1230, which mention a William Jak.
In the 14th century, the surname Jack was sometimes spelled as Jakke or Jacke. The name was also associated with various place names, such as Jackfield in Shropshire and Jackhouse in Northumberland.
One notable person with the surname Jack was John Jack (1513-1589), a Scottish prelate who served as the Bishop of Glasgow from 1551 to 1571. Another prominent individual with this surname was Gilbert Jack (1578-1628), a Scottish mathematician and physician who made significant contributions to the study of logarithms.
In the 17th century, the surname Jack was also found in the United States, with one of the earliest recorded instances being John Jack, who was born in Virginia in 1639. Another notable American with this surname was Peter Jack (1766-1836), a sailor and merchant from Boston who played a role in the War of 1812.
In the 19th century, a famous individual with the surname Jack was William Jack (1834-1924), a Scottish botanist and geologist who conducted extensive research in India and served as the curator of the Calcutta Botanical Gardens.
The surname Jack has also been associated with various occupations and trades throughout history, such as jacksmith, which referred to a maker of jacks or lifting devices used in mills and other machinery.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jack
Among Census respondents with the surname Jack, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.3%. The next largest groups are Black (29.4%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Jack 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 Jack surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White54.3% · 8,228
- Black or African American29.4% · 4,454
- Two or more races4.6% · 702
- American Indian and Alaska Native4.6% · 700
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 538
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.4% · 519
Timeline
Historical Census data for Jack
Jack 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
#2,382
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,256
+1,266 bearers (+9.0%)
Per 100,000 5.17
Rank movement Down 6 places
2020
#2,345
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,141
-115 bearers (-0.8%)
Per 100,000 5.07
Rank movement Up 37 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,376 | 13,990 | 5.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,382 | 15,256 | 5.17 | +1,266 bearers (+9.0%) | Down 6 places |
| 2020 | #2,345 | 15,141 | 5.07 | -115 bearers (-0.8%) | Up 37 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 Jack 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 | #2,382 | #2,345 | 1.6% |
| Count | 15,256 | 15,141 | -0.8% |
| Per 100K | 5.17 | 5.07 | -2.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Jack bearers went from 15,256 to 15,141 (-0.8% change). The surname moved up 37 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,382 to #2,345.
FAQ
Jack surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Jack?
Name Census estimates that about 17,363 living Americans carry the surname Jack. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 19,741 residents.
How common is Jack?
Jack ranks #2,345 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.07 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,141 people with the surname Jack. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (17,363), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.07 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Jack.
Has Jack become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Jack went from 15,256 recorded bearers to 15,141. That is a decrease of 115 (-0.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #2,382 to #2,345.
What does the Census say about the background of Jack?
Among Census respondents with the surname Jack, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.3%. The next largest groups are Black (29.4%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Jack in the 2020 Census, accounting for 54.3% (8,228 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Jack appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (54.3%), Black (29.4%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Jack (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 Jack mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who made or sold jackets or other outer garments. 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 Jack (5.07 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 have the last name Jack?
See how many people are called Jack on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.