2000
#10,765
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,720
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.01
Rare Last name
Merriam
Derived from a place name meaning "pleasant river" or "boundary river" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,098 Americans carry the last name Merriam. That puts it at #11,195 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.90 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 110,637 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Merriam 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.
Bearers in the US
3.1K
1 in 110,637
Census rank
#11,195
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,702 bearers of the surname Merriam in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.90 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11195th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Merriam, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Merriam
The surname Merriam originated in England, derived from the Old English words "mere" meaning "pool" or "lake" and "ham" meaning "homestead" or "village." This suggests that the name may have originated from individuals who lived near a pool or lake.
The earliest known record of the Merriam surname dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was recorded as "Merriam" in the county of Lincolnshire. This indicates that the name has been present in England for centuries.
During the medieval period, the name was often spelled in various ways, such as Meriam, Merryam, and Meryam, reflecting the phonetic variations common at that time. Some early records show the name associated with places like Merriamcote in Warwickshire and Merriamwode in Oxfordshire.
One notable individual bearing the Merriam surname was Sir John Merriam (c. 1350-1412), a Member of Parliament for Lincolnshire during the reign of King Henry IV. Another was Robert Merriam (c. 1500-1570), a prominent landowner and landowner in Gloucestershire.
In the 16th century, the Merriam family established themselves in the town of Hadlowe, Essex, where they played a significant role in the local community. William Merriam (1598-1673), a member of this family, was one of the early Puritan settlers in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, arriving in 1636.
Other notable individuals with the Merriam surname include George Merriam (1803-1880), an American publisher and co-founder of the Merriam-Webster dictionary; Clinton Hart Merriam (1855-1942), an American naturalist and the first chief of the U.S. Biological Survey; and Robert Merriam (1890-1957), an American politician who served as the Governor of California from 1934 to 1939.
The Merriam surname has a rich history, originating from Old English roots and carrying associations with various places in England throughout the centuries. While its spelling has varied over time, the name has been present in historical records for over 900 years and has been borne by individuals of significance in various fields.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Merriam
Among Census respondents with the surname Merriam, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Merriam 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 Merriam surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 2,441
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 116
- Two or more races3.3% · 90
- Black or African American0.9% · 23
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Merriam
Merriam 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
#11,322
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,787
+67 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Down 557 places
2020
#11,195
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,702
-85 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Up 127 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,765 | 2,720 | 1.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,322 | 2,787 | 0.94 | +67 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 557 places |
| 2020 | #11,195 | 2,702 | 0.90 | -85 bearers (-3.0%) | Up 127 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 Merriam 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 | #11,322 | #11,195 | 1.1% |
| Count | 2,787 | 2,702 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.90 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Merriam bearers went from 2,787 to 2,702 (-3.0% change). The surname moved up 127 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,322 to #11,195.
FAQ
Merriam surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Merriam?
Name Census estimates that about 3,098 living Americans carry the surname Merriam. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 110,637 residents.
How common is Merriam?
Merriam ranks #11,195 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.90 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 2,702 people with the surname Merriam. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,098), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.9 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.90 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 Merriam.
Has Merriam become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Merriam went from 2,787 recorded bearers to 2,702. That is a decrease of 85 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,322 to #11,195.
What does the Census say about the background of Merriam?
Among Census respondents with the surname Merriam, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Merriam in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (2,441 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Merriam appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Hispanic (4.3%), Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Merriam (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 Merriam mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "pleasant river" or "boundary river" 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 Merriam (0.90 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 common is the surname Merriam?
See how common the surname Merriam is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.