2000
#1,597
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,627
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.65
Uncommon Last name
Miner
An occupational surname referring to a person who worked in a mine, extracting coal, ore, or other minerals.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 23,605 Americans carry the last name Miner. That puts it at #1,705 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 14,520 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Miner 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 Miner with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
24K
1 in 14,520
Census rank
#1,705
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
21K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 20,585 bearers of the surname Miner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1705th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Miner, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Miner
The surname Miner originated from the Anglo-Saxon word "munere" which means miner or worker in mines. It is an occupational surname that emerged in England during the medieval period, specifically in regions where mining was a prominent industry.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Miner can be traced back to the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive census conducted under the orders of William the Conqueror. Several individuals bearing variations of the name, such as "le Miner" and "le Minur," were documented in counties like Devon and Somerset.
As mining continued to grow in importance throughout the Middle Ages, the surname became more widespread across England. It was particularly prevalent in areas rich in mineral resources, such as Cornwall, Derbyshire, and the Yorkshire Dales, where mining activities were concentrated.
One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Miner was William le Miner, who lived in Gloucestershire during the 13th century. Another notable figure was John Miner, a wealthy merchant and landowner from Somerset, who was born in the late 15th century and played a significant role in local affairs.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Miner appeared in various records, including parish registers and tax rolls. Some notable individuals from this period include Thomas Miner, a Puritan settler who arrived in New England in 1630, and John Miner, a prominent citizen of Stratford, Connecticut, who was born in 1638.
In the 18th century, the Miner surname gained recognition through the achievements of individuals like Thomas Miner, a physician and mathematician who was born in 1712 and made contributions to the field of calculus. Another notable figure was William Miner, a British officer in the Royal Navy who served during the American Revolutionary War and was born in 1742.
As the Industrial Revolution took hold in the 19th century, the Miner surname continued to be associated with the mining industry, as well as other occupations related to the extraction and processing of minerals. Some notable individuals from this era include Hiram Abiff Miner, an American politician and lawyer born in 1824, and Thomas Miner, a British engineer and inventor who patented several improvements to mining equipment in the late 1800s.
Throughout history, the surname Miner has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including miners, merchants, artists, and professionals. It has also been found in different spellings and variations, such as Myner, Minour, and Minard, reflecting the regional and linguistic diversity of the English language.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Miner
Among Census respondents with the surname Miner, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Miner 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 Miner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.7% · 17,436
- Black or African American5.4% · 1,106
- Two or more races4.0% · 816
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 769
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 244
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 214
Timeline
Historical Census data for Miner
Miner 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
#1,683
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,439
+812 bearers (+3.9%)
Per 100,000 7.27
Rank movement Down 86 places
2020
#1,705
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,585
-854 bearers (-4.0%)
Per 100,000 6.89
Rank movement Down 22 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,597 | 20,627 | 7.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,683 | 21,439 | 7.27 | +812 bearers (+3.9%) | Down 86 places |
| 2020 | #1,705 | 20,585 | 6.89 | -854 bearers (-4.0%) | Down 22 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 Miner 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 | #1,683 | #1,705 | -1.3% |
| Count | 21,439 | 20,585 | -4.0% |
| Per 100K | 7.27 | 6.89 | -5.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Miner bearers went from 21,439 to 20,585 (-4.0% change). The surname moved down 22 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,683 to #1,705.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Miner
FAQ
Miner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Miner?
Name Census estimates that about 23,605 living Americans carry the surname Miner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 14,520 residents.
How common is Miner?
Miner ranks #1,705 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.89 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 20,585 people with the surname Miner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (23,605), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.89 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Miner.
Has Miner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Miner went from 21,439 recorded bearers to 20,585. That is a decrease of 854 (-4.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,683 to #1,705.
What does the Census say about the background of Miner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Miner, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Miner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.7% (17,436 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Miner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.7%), Black (5.4%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Miner (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 Miner mean?
An occupational surname referring to a person who worked in a mine, extracting coal, ore, or other minerals. 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 Miner (6.89 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 are called Miner?
Want to know how many people have the surname Miner? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.