2000
#752
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 41,670
First available Census row
Per 100,000 15.45
Uncommon Last name
Lowery
Derived from a place name meaning "low-lying area" or "small hill" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 46,609 Americans carry the last name Lowery. That puts it at #832 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 13.60 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 7,354 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lowery 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 Lowery with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
47K
1 in 7,354
Census rank
#832
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
13.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
41K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 40,645 bearers of the surname Lowery in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 13.60 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 832nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lowery, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.4%. The next largest groups are Black (22.5%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lowery
The surname Lowery has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to be a locational name, derived from the place name Lowrie, which is a township in the parish of Wilton, in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The name Lowrie is derived from the Old English words "hlaw" meaning a hill or mound, and "rīg" meaning a ridge.
In the Domesday Book, a survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, the place name Lowrie is recorded as "Lofri" and "Lofric." This suggests that the surname Lowery may have originated from this area and been adopted by families residing there.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Lowery can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, where a person named Robertus de Louri is mentioned. This spelling variation highlights the evolution of the name over time.
Sir Richard Lowery (c. 1570 - 1610) was an English merchant and politician who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1606. He was a prominent figure in the City of London and played a significant role in the East India Company's early trade activities.
Another notable individual with this surname was John Lowery (1781 - 1865), an American politician who served as the 6th Governor of Delaware from 1851 to 1855.
In the literary world, Robert Lowery (1765 - 1834) was an English poet and engraver, known for his work "The Pleasures of Friendship" published in 1810.
Reverend George Taylor Lowery (1819 - 1899) was an American Methodist clergyman and author, who wrote several books on religious topics, including "Positive Theology" and "The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit."
Sir Charles Humphrey Lowery (1851 - 1928) was a British civil servant and author, who served as the Secretary to the Government of India and authored several books on Indian history and culture.
These examples demonstrate the widespread presence of the surname Lowery across different fields and time periods, reflecting its enduring legacy originating from the medieval period in England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lowery
Among Census respondents with the surname Lowery, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.4%. The next largest groups are Black (22.5%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Lowery 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 Lowery surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.4% · 26,599
- Black or African American22.5% · 9,162
- Two or more races4.7% · 1,914
- American Indian and Alaska Native4.0% · 1,643
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 1,144
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 183
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lowery
Lowery 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
#799
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 43,278
+1,608 bearers (+3.9%)
Per 100,000 14.67
Rank movement Down 47 places
2020
#832
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 40,645
-2,633 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 13.60
Rank movement Down 33 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #752 | 41,670 | 15.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #799 | 43,278 | 14.67 | +1,608 bearers (+3.9%) | Down 47 places |
| 2020 | #832 | 40,645 | 13.60 | -2,633 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 33 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 Lowery 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 | #799 | #832 | -4.1% |
| Count | 43,278 | 40,645 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 14.67 | 13.60 | -7.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lowery bearers went from 43,278 to 40,645 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 33 positions in the national ranking, going from #799 to #832.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Lowery
FAQ
Lowery surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lowery?
Name Census estimates that about 46,609 living Americans carry the surname Lowery. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 7,354 residents.
How common is Lowery?
Lowery ranks #832 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 13.60 per 100,000 residents, which is about 14 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 40,645 people with the surname Lowery. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (46,609), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 13.6 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 13.60 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 14 of them to have the surname Lowery.
Has Lowery become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lowery went from 43,278 recorded bearers to 40,645. That is a decrease of 2,633 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #799 to #832.
What does the Census say about the background of Lowery?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lowery, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.4%. The next largest groups are Black (22.5%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Lowery in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.4% (26,599 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lowery appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.4%), Black (22.5%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Lowery (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 Lowery mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "low-lying area" or "small hill" 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 Lowery (13.60 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 surname Lowery?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.