2000
#7,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,128
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.53
Rare Last name
Odum
Derived from the Old Norse personal name "Auðunn," meaning "wealthy friend."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,851 Americans carry the last name Odum. That puts it at #7,573 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.42 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 70,656 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Odum 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
4.9K
1 in 70,656
Census rank
#7,573
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,230 bearers of the surname Odum in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.42 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7573rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Odum, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.9%. The next largest groups are Black (28.1%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Odum
Among Census respondents with the surname Odum, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.9%. The next largest groups are Black (28.1%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Odum 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 Odum surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White62.9% · 2,660
- Black or African American28.1% · 1,188
- Two or more races5.2% · 220
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 118
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Odum
Odum 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
#7,585
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,381
+253 bearers (+6.1%)
Per 100,000 1.49
Rank movement Down 149 places
2020
#7,573
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,230
-151 bearers (-3.4%)
Per 100,000 1.42
Rank movement Up 12 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,436 | 4,128 | 1.53 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,585 | 4,381 | 1.49 | +253 bearers (+6.1%) | Down 149 places |
| 2020 | #7,573 | 4,230 | 1.42 | -151 bearers (-3.4%) | Up 12 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 Odum 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 | #7,585 | #7,573 | 0.2% |
| Count | 4,381 | 4,230 | -3.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.49 | 1.42 | -5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Odum bearers went from 4,381 to 4,230 (-3.4% change). The surname moved up 12 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,585 to #7,573.
FAQ
Odum surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Odum?
Name Census estimates that about 4,851 living Americans carry the surname Odum. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 70,656 residents.
How common is Odum?
Odum ranks #7,573 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.42 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 4,230 people with the surname Odum. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,851), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.42 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.42 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 Odum.
Has Odum become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Odum went from 4,381 recorded bearers to 4,230. That is a decrease of 151 (-3.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,585 to #7,573.
What does the Census say about the background of Odum?
Among Census respondents with the surname Odum, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.9%. The next largest groups are Black (28.1%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Odum in the 2020 Census, accounting for 62.9% (2,660 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Odum appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (62.9%), Black (28.1%), Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Odum (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 Odum mean?
Derived from the Old Norse personal name "Auðunn," meaning "wealthy friend." 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 Odum (1.42 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 Odum?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Odum is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.