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

Owens, 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 Owens surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Owens in America

Owens is the 140th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Owens surname appeared 182,719 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 62 people would have the surname Owens.

We can also compare 2010 data for Owens 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 Owens

The surname Owens is of Welsh origin and is derived from the medieval Welsh personal name Owain, which is a cognate of the name Owen. Owain itself derived from the Welsh word 'eogyn', meaning 'youth' or 'young warrior'. The surname likely emerged in the 12th or 13th century as the use of hereditary surnames became more prevalent in Wales.

Owens is a common spelling variation of the Welsh patronymic surname ap Owen, meaning 'son of Owen'. Other early spellings included Oweyn, Oven, and Owyne. The name was particularly prominent in the counties of Anglesey, Caernarvonshire, and Merionethshire in North Wales.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Owain Gwynedd, Prince of Gwynedd, who lived from around 1100 to 1170. He is considered one of the most celebrated Welsh rulers of the medieval period and played a significant role in the struggle for Welsh independence against the Normans.

The Domesday Book, a great survey of landowners in England and Wales commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any references to the surname Owens or its variants. However, it does mention several individuals with the personal name Owain or Owen.

In the 14th century, the name appeared in various records and manuscripts, such as the Patent Rolls of King Edward III, which mentioned an Ythel ap Oweyn in 1343. Another early reference was found in the Merioneth Lay Subsidy Roll of 1292-3, listing a Thomas ap Oweyn.

Notable individuals with the surname Owens throughout history include:

1. Wilfred Owen (1893-1918), an influential English poet and soldier who is widely regarded as one of the leading poets of the First World War.

2. Robert Owens (c. 1771-1858), an English industrialist and social reformer who founded the utopian settlement of New Harmony, Indiana.

3. Jesse Owens (1913-1980), an American track and field athlete who achieved international fame at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by winning four gold medals.

4. Iris Owens (1923-2008), an American biochemist and researcher who made significant contributions to the understanding of Alzheimer's disease.

5. Gary Owens (1936-2015), an American voice actor and radio announcer best known for his work on the comedy series Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Owens

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

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

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

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