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

Organ, 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 Organ surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Organ in America

Organ is the 12696th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Organ surname appeared 2,431 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 Organ.

We can also compare 2010 data for Organ 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 Organ

The surname Organ is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "organan," which means "organ player" or "musician." This suggests that the name was initially given as an occupational surname to someone who played the organ or was a musician by trade.

One of the earliest known records of the Organ surname dates back to the 13th century in the county of Oxfordshire. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 mentions a Walter le Organer, indicating that he was a member of the organ-playing profession.

During the 16th century, the Organ surname appeared in various parish records across England. For instance, the baptism of John Organ was recorded in the parish of St. Sepulchre, London, in 1567. Additionally, the marriage of Richard Organ and Alice Coxe was documented in the parish of Steeple Aston, Oxfordshire, in 1591.

Notably, the Organ surname can also be traced back to the village of Orgreave in South Yorkshire. This place name, which was originally spelled as "Orgrave" in the Domesday Book of 1086, likely contributed to the surname's development in that region.

One of the earliest notable individuals with the Organ surname was William Organ (c. 1635-1712), an English composer and organist who served as the Master of the Choristers at Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford.

Another prominent figure was John Organ (1585-1638), an English poet and clergyman who held the position of Archdeacon of Suffolk and Prebendary of Ely Cathedral.

In the 18th century, John Organ (1726-1788) was a renowned English clockmaker and watchmaker who worked in London and contributed significantly to the development of precision timekeeping devices.

Moving into the 19th century, Edward Organ (1801-1858) was a British architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings in London, including the former Lambeth Bridge.

Additionally, James Organ (1835-1888) was a British artist and painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes depicting rural life in England.

These are just a few examples of individuals who have carried the Organ surname throughout history, highlighting its English origins and potential occupational roots in the musical or ecclesiastical fields.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Organ

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!