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

Odum, 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 Odum surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Odum in America

Odum is the 7585th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Odum surname appeared 4,381 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Odum.

We can also compare 2010 data for Odum 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 Odum

The surname ODUM has its origins in England and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "od" meaning wealth or prosperity and "ham" meaning home or settlement. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a prosperous homestead or village.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name ODUM is found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from the year 1275, where a person named Thomas Odum is mentioned as a resident of the county. The surname also appears in various medieval records and documents from different regions of England, including the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1279 and the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the ODUM surname was particularly prevalent in the counties of Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, and Worcestershire, where it was often associated with small landowners and farmers. Some notable individuals from this period include John Odum (c. 1550-1620), a landowner from Oxfordshire, and Thomas Odum (c. 1580-1645), a farmer from Gloucestershire.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the ODUM name began to spread more widely across England, with some families migrating to other parts of the country and even to the colonies in North America. One notable figure from this time was William Odum (1786-1858), a businessman and entrepreneur from Gloucestershire who established a successful trading company in London.

Throughout history, the ODUM surname has also been linked to various place names and locations, such as Odumcroft in Oxfordshire, Odumley in Gloucestershire, and Odumbrae in Yorkshire. These place names likely derived from the same Old English roots as the surname itself.

Other notable individuals with the ODUM surname include:

1. Robert Odum (1610-1679), a prominent lawyer and judge in London.
2. Elizabeth Odum (1725-1798), an English poet and author from Gloucestershire.
3. Henry Odum (1810-1884), a wealthy industrialist and philanthropist from Worcestershire.
4. James Odum (1858-1932), a renowned architect from London who designed several iconic buildings.
5. Margaret Odum (1901-1985), a pioneering scientist and ecologist from Oxfordshire.

These are just a few examples of the rich history and diversity associated with the ODUM surname, which has its roots firmly planted in the English countryside and has since spread to various parts of the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Odum

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

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 Odum 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 Odum 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 Odum was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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