2000
#10,753
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,723
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.01
Rare Last name
Napper
An occupational surname referring to someone who combs, cards, or operates on wool, from the Middle English "nappere."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,994 Americans carry the last name Napper. That puts it at #11,526 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.87 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 114,480 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Napper 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 Napper with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.0K
1 in 114,480
Census rank
#11,526
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,611 bearers of the surname Napper in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.87 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11526th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Napper, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.2%. The next largest groups are Black (35.1%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Napper
The surname Napper is derived from an English occupational name for someone who was a maker or seller of rough woolen cloths called 'naps'. It originated in the 14th century from the Middle English word 'nap', which referred to the raised fibres on the surface of a fabric.
The name Napper is believed to have originated in the counties of Somerset, Gloucestershire, and Wiltshire in southwest England, where the wool trade was particularly prominent during the medieval period. It is likely that the earliest bearers of this surname were involved in the production or sale of these rough woolen cloths, which were commonly used for clothing and other textiles.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Napper can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1327, where a William le Napper is listed. This suggests that the name had already become established as a hereditary surname by the early 14th century.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are several entries for places with names derived from the Old English word 'næpp', which may have been related to the occupational term 'napper'. These include Nappingden in Northamptonshire and Nappingwelle in Lincolnshire, indicating that the occupation or trade had roots dating back to the Anglo-Saxon period.
Notable individuals with the surname Napper throughout history include:
1. Sir Robert Napper (c. 1545-1618), an English politician and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament for Somerset.
2. George Napper (c. 1550-1610), an English playwright and poet during the Elizabethan era.
3. Nathaniel Napper (1633-1704), an English nonconformist minister and writer who was ejected from his church during the Great Ejection of 1662.
4. Samuel Napper (c. 1680-1744), an English architect and builder who designed several churches and manor houses in the counties of Somerset and Gloucestershire.
5. William Napper (1789-1859), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars and later became a prominent shipbuilder in the Royal Navy dockyards.
The surname Napper continues to be found throughout England, particularly in the southwestern counties, as well as in parts of the United States and other English-speaking countries where descendants of the original Napper families have migrated over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Napper
Among Census respondents with the surname Napper, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.2%. The next largest groups are Black (35.1%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Napper 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 Napper surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White55.2% · 1,441
- Black or African American35.1% · 917
- Two or more races5.3% · 139
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 84
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Napper
Napper 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
#11,216
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,819
+96 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.96
Rank movement Down 463 places
2020
#11,526
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,611
-208 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Down 310 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,753 | 2,723 | 1.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,216 | 2,819 | 0.96 | +96 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 463 places |
| 2020 | #11,526 | 2,611 | 0.87 | -208 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 310 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 Napper 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 | #11,216 | #11,526 | -2.8% |
| Count | 2,819 | 2,611 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.96 | 0.87 | -9.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Napper bearers went from 2,819 to 2,611 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 310 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,216 to #11,526.
FAQ
Napper surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Napper?
Name Census estimates that about 2,994 living Americans carry the surname Napper. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 114,480 residents.
How common is Napper?
Napper ranks #11,526 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.87 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 2,611 people with the surname Napper. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,994), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.87 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.87 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 Napper.
Has Napper become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Napper went from 2,819 recorded bearers to 2,611. That is a decrease of 208 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,216 to #11,526.
What does the Census say about the background of Napper?
Among Census respondents with the surname Napper, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.2%. The next largest groups are Black (35.1%) and Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Napper in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.2% (1,441 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Napper appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (55.2%), Black (35.1%), Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Napper (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 Napper mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who combs, cards, or operates on wool, from the Middle English "nappere." 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 Napper (0.87 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 Napper?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.