2000
#12,583
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,258
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Pair
A French occupational surname for a father and son who worked together, or for a peer or equal.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,407 Americans carry the last name Pair. That puts it at #13,789 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 142,399 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pair 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 Pair with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 142,399
Census rank
#13,789
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,099 bearers of the surname Pair in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13789th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pair, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (19.8%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pair
The surname PAIR is of French origin and is believed to have emerged in the late 12th or early 13th century. It is derived from the Old French word "per," meaning "equal" or "peer." The name likely referred to someone who was considered an equal or a peer in a social or professional context.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Rolls of Parliament from the year 1305, which mentions a certain "William le Peer." This spelling variation reflects the transition from the Old French to the Middle English pronunciation of the name.
Another early reference to the name is in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which were administrative records from the reign of King Edward I. These rolls contain the name "Robert le Peyr," using a slightly different spelling.
The Domesday Book, the famous survey of landowners commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the surname PAIR. However, it does mention several individuals with the first name "Pair" or "Paire," which may have been the precursor to the later adoption of the surname.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname PAIR is Richard Pair, who was born in Gloucestershire, England, around 1450. He was a prominent landowner and served as a member of Parliament in the late 15th century.
Another notable figure was John Pair, a merchant and philanthropist born in London in 1575. He made significant contributions to the city's infrastructure and founded several charitable institutions during his lifetime.
In the 17th century, there was a family of Pairs who were influential in the town of Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. Thomas Pair (1612-1683) was a wealthy landowner and served as the Mayor of Stratford-upon-Avon in 1661.
The surname PAIR also has connections to various place names in England, such as Paire's Green in Surrey and Paire's Hill in Sussex. These place names likely derived from individuals or families with the surname PAIR who had settled or owned land in those areas.
One of the most notable individuals with the surname PAIR was Sir James Pair (1701-1784), an accomplished military officer who served in the British Army during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War. He was knighted for his service and is remembered for his pivotal role in several key battles.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pair
Among Census respondents with the surname Pair, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (19.8%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Pair 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 Pair surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.2% · 1,410
- Black or African American19.8% · 415
- Two or more races6.4% · 135
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 84
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.1% · 44
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pair
Pair 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
#14,050
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,143
-115 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.73
Rank movement Down 1,467 places
2020
#13,789
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,099
-44 bearers (-2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Up 261 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,583 | 2,258 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,050 | 2,143 | 0.73 | -115 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 1,467 places |
| 2020 | #13,789 | 2,099 | 0.70 | -44 bearers (-2.1%) | Up 261 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 Pair 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 | #14,050 | #13,789 | 1.9% |
| Count | 2,143 | 2,099 | -2.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.73 | 0.70 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pair bearers went from 2,143 to 2,099 (-2.1% change). The surname moved up 261 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,050 to #13,789.
FAQ
Pair surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pair?
Name Census estimates that about 2,407 living Americans carry the surname Pair. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 142,399 residents.
How common is Pair?
Pair ranks #13,789 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.70 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 2,099 people with the surname Pair. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,407), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.70 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 Pair.
Has Pair become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pair went from 2,143 recorded bearers to 2,099. That is a decrease of 44 (-2.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,050 to #13,789.
What does the Census say about the background of Pair?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pair, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.2%. The next largest groups are Black (19.8%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Pair in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.2% (1,410 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pair appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.2%), Black (19.8%), Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Pair (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 Pair mean?
A French occupational surname for a father and son who worked together, or for a peer or equal. 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 Pair (0.70 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 share the surname Pair?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.