2000
#130,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Parren
A surname possibly derived from a place name or referring to someone who lived near a barn or small farmhouse.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Parren. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Parren 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 Parren with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Parren in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Parren, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Black (10.3%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Parren
The surname Parren is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period, possibly as early as the 11th century. It is thought to derive from the Old English word "parra," meaning an enclosed area or small field, suggesting that the name may have initially been a descriptive one for someone who lived near or worked in such an enclosure.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Parren surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which lists a landowner named Roger Parren in the county of Gloucestershire. This suggests that the name was already established in parts of England by the late 11th century.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the Parren family appears to have been concentrated primarily in the southern and western regions of England, with various spellings such as Parren, Parrin, and Paryn appearing in historical records from counties like Somerset, Dorset, and Devon.
In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the Parren name was Sir William Parren, a knight who served under King Edward I and took part in the Welsh Wars. Records from this period also mention a village called Parren's Green in Somerset, indicating a possible connection between the surname and a place name.
During the 16th century, a prominent member of the Parren family was John Parren (1510-1582), a wealthy merchant and landowner from Gloucestershire who served as a Member of Parliament for the city of Bristol.
In the 17th century, Thomas Parren (1633-1701) was a renowned philosopher and theologian who wrote extensively on the nature of free will and predestination, contributing to the ongoing religious debates of the time.
Another notable individual with the Parren surname was Elizabeth Parren (1745-1825), a pioneering educator who established one of the first schools for girls in London, challenging the traditional gender norms of her era.
Throughout its history, the Parren surname has maintained a presence in various parts of England, though it has never been among the most common surnames in the country. While spelling variations have occurred over time, the core name has remained relatively consistent, reflecting its deep roots in the English language and cultural heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Parren
Among Census respondents with the surname Parren, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Black (10.3%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Parren 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 Parren surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.8% · 91
- Black or African American10.3% · 12
- Two or more races5.1% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Parren
Parren 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
#154,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-15 bearers (-12.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 24,464 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+12 bearers (+11.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,637 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #130,443 | 120 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #154,907 | 105 | 0.04 | -15 bearers (-12.5%) | Down 24,464 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | +12 bearers (+11.4%) | Up 10,637 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 Parren 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 | #154,907 | #144,270 | 6.9% |
| Count | 105 | 117 | 11.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Parren bearers went from 105 to 117 (+11.4% change). The surname moved up 10,637 positions in the national ranking, going from #154,907 to #144,270.
FAQ
Parren surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Parren?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Parren. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Parren?
Parren ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 117 people with the surname Parren. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Parren.
Has Parren become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Parren went from 105 recorded bearers to 117. That is an increase of 12 (+11.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #154,907 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Parren?
Among Census respondents with the surname Parren, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Black (10.3%) and Two or More Races (5.1%). 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 Parren in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.8% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Parren appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.8%), Black (10.3%), Two or More Races (5.1%). 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 Parren (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 Parren mean?
A surname possibly derived from a place name or referring to someone who lived near a barn or small farmhouse. 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 Parren (0.04 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 Parren?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.