Find out how popular the last name Nunn is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Nunn.

Nunn, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Nunn surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nunn in America

Nunn is the 2164th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nunn surname appeared 16,769 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Nunn.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nunn to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Nunn

The surname Nunn is derived from an old English word meaning "nun" and it was originally an occupational name given to those who worked in nunneries. The name has its roots in England and can be traced back to the 11th century.

It is believed that the earliest recorded use of the surname Nunn was in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was spelled as "Nonne". This suggests that the name had already been in use for some time before the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.

In the 12th century, the name was found in various records as "le Nunne" and "le Nonne", indicating that it was a descriptive surname at the time. By the 13th century, the spelling had evolved to the more modern form of "Nunn".

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname was William Nunn, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1195. Another early bearer of the name was John Nunn, a resident of Cambridgeshire, who was listed in the Hundred Rolls of 1273.

In the 14th century, the name began to appear in various places across England, such as in the Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire in 1379, where a Robert Nunn was recorded.

Over the centuries, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Nunn. One of the most famous was Sir William Nunn (1597-1663), an English politician who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1629. Another was John Nunn (1770-1841), a British naval officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars.

Other notable Nunns include Thomas Nunn (1806-1872), an English architect who designed several churches in London, and Frederic Nunn (1826-1907), an English cricketer who played for Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club.

In the 20th century, one of the most prominent individuals with the surname was Max Nunn (1916-1995), an American mathematician and computer scientist who made significant contributions to the field of artificial intelligence.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nunn

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Nunn.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Nunn was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Nunn has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Nunn was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Nunn, please contact us.

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