2000
#15,177
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,783
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.66
Rare Last name
Ore
A surname referring to a ridge or slope in the landscape.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,030 Americans carry the last name Ore. That puts it at #15,844 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 168,845 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ore 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 Ore with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.0K
1 in 168,845
Census rank
#15,844
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,770 bearers of the surname Ore in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15844th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ore, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (27.7%) and Black (15.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ore
The surname Ore has its origins in Norway, dating back to the Viking era around the 8th to 11th centuries. It is derived from the Old Norse word "or," meaning a gravel bank or a piece of land by a river. This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name lived in areas with such geographic features.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Ore surname can be found in the Landnámabók, a medieval Icelandic manuscript that chronicles the settlement of Iceland in the 9th and 10th centuries. The manuscript mentions an individual named Hrafn Orri, who settled in the region of Vatnsdalur in northern Iceland.
In England, the Ore surname first appeared in the Domesday Book of 1086, a comprehensive survey of landowners and their holdings commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name was recorded as "de Ora" and was likely brought to England by Norse settlers or Norman invaders with Scandinavian roots.
The Ore surname has also been associated with various place names, such as Ore in Sussex, England, and Ore Valley in Shropshire, England. These place names may have influenced the adoption or spelling variations of the surname.
Notable historical figures with the Ore surname include:
1. Öre Ögmundsson (c. 1100-1180), an Icelandic chieftain and lawspeaker who played a significant role in the Sturlung Era of Icelandic history.
2. George Ore (1848-1926), an American politician who served as the 22nd Governor of Wyoming from 1899 to 1903.
3. Øystein Ore (1899-1968), a Norwegian-American mathematician known for his contributions to graph theory and combinatorics.
4. Arne Øre (1927-2010), a Norwegian writer and playwright who received the Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature in 1964.
5. Helge Ore (1917-2002), a Norwegian-American mathematician and professor at Yale University, known for his work in graph theory and combinatorics.
While the Ore surname has its roots in Scandinavia, it has since spread to various parts of the world, particularly through migration and exploration during the Viking and Medieval periods. Despite its geographical dispersal, the name retains its connection to the rugged landscapes and settlements of its Norse origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ore
Among Census respondents with the surname Ore, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (27.7%) and Black (15.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Ore 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 Ore surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White51.5% · 911
- Hispanic or Latino27.7% · 491
- Black or African American15.3% · 270
- Two or more races3.3% · 58
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 33
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ore
Ore 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
#15,673
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,862
+79 bearers (+4.4%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Down 496 places
2020
#15,844
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,770
-92 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.59
Rank movement Down 171 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,177 | 1,783 | 0.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,673 | 1,862 | 0.63 | +79 bearers (+4.4%) | Down 496 places |
| 2020 | #15,844 | 1,770 | 0.59 | -92 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 171 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 Ore 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 | #15,673 | #15,844 | -1.1% |
| Count | 1,862 | 1,770 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.63 | 0.59 | -6.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ore bearers went from 1,862 to 1,770 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 171 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,673 to #15,844.
FAQ
Ore surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ore?
Name Census estimates that about 2,030 living Americans carry the surname Ore. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 168,845 residents.
How common is Ore?
Ore ranks #15,844 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.59 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 1,770 people with the surname Ore. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,030), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.59 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 Ore.
Has Ore become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ore went from 1,862 recorded bearers to 1,770. That is a decrease of 92 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #15,673 to #15,844.
What does the Census say about the background of Ore?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ore, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (27.7%) and Black (15.3%). 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 Ore in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.5% (911 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ore appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (51.5%), Hispanic (27.7%), Black (15.3%). 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 Ore (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 Ore mean?
A surname referring to a ridge or slope in the landscape. 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 Ore (0.59 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 have the surname Ore?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.