2000
#18,057
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,424
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.53
Rare Last name
Pharris
From a French surname derived from the old French name Ferris, meaning "iron worker" or "blacksmith".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,435 Americans carry the last name Pharris. That puts it at #21,315 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.42 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 238,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pharris 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.
Bearers in the US
1.4K
1 in 238,853
Census rank
#21,315
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,251 bearers of the surname Pharris in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.42 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 21315th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pharris, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pharris
The surname Pharris is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "fær" meaning a traveling person and "hisc" meaning a family or household. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to a group of travelers or nomads who roamed from place to place.
In its earliest known forms, the surname was spelled as Pharrys, Pharris, Pharryes, and Pharryes. These variations likely arose due to inconsistencies in spelling and pronunciation during the Middle Ages. The first recorded instances of the name appear in tax rolls and parish records from the 13th and 14th centuries in counties such as Essex, Suffolk, and Norfolk.
While the name Pharris does not appear in the Domesday Book of 1086, a similar surname, Ferris, is mentioned in connection with landholdings in Hertfordshire. This suggests that the two names may share a common ancestry or origin.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Pharris surname was John Pharris, a merchant and landowner who lived in the village of Sudbury, Suffolk in the late 14th century. Another notable figure was William Pharris, a clergyman and scholar who served as the rector of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk from 1492 to 1516.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Pharris name was also found in various parts of England, including Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Gloucestershire. In 1587, a man named Thomas Pharris was recorded as a resident of the town of Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare.
Other historical figures bearing the Pharris surname include:
1. Robert Pharris (1602-1678), a prominent merchant and Member of Parliament from Bristol.
2. Elizabeth Pharris (1635-1719), a Quaker activist and writer from Yorkshire.
3. John Pharris (1718-1792), a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War.
4. Margaret Pharris (1829-1891), an English novelist and poet.
5. Sir Edward Pharris (1857-1932), a British industrialist and philanthropist from Lancashire.
The Pharris name has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Pharris Farm in Suffolk and Pharris Hill in Gloucestershire. These locations may have derived their names from early settlers or landowners bearing the Pharris surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pharris
Among Census respondents with the surname Pharris, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Pharris 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 Pharris surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.5% · 1,019
- Black or African American9.9% · 124
- Two or more races4.8% · 60
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 33
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pharris
Pharris 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
#19,152
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,418
-6 bearers (-0.4%)
Per 100,000 0.48
Rank movement Down 1,095 places
2020
#21,315
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,251
-167 bearers (-11.8%)
Per 100,000 0.42
Rank movement Down 2,163 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,057 | 1,424 | 0.53 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,152 | 1,418 | 0.48 | -6 bearers (-0.4%) | Down 1,095 places |
| 2020 | #21,315 | 1,251 | 0.42 | -167 bearers (-11.8%) | Down 2,163 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 Pharris 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 | #19,152 | #21,315 | -11.3% |
| Count | 1,418 | 1,251 | -11.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.48 | 0.42 | -12.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pharris bearers went from 1,418 to 1,251 (-11.8% change). The surname moved down 2,163 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,152 to #21,315.
FAQ
Pharris surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pharris?
Name Census estimates that about 1,435 living Americans carry the surname Pharris. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 238,853 residents.
How common is Pharris?
Pharris ranks #21,315 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.42 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 1,251 people with the surname Pharris. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,435), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.42 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.42 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 Pharris.
Has Pharris become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pharris went from 1,418 recorded bearers to 1,251. That is a decrease of 167 (-11.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #19,152 to #21,315.
What does the Census say about the background of Pharris?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pharris, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Pharris in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.5% (1,019 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pharris appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.5%), Black (9.9%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Pharris (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 Pharris mean?
From a French surname derived from the old French name Ferris, meaning "iron worker" or "blacksmith". 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 Pharris (0.42 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 are called Pharris?
See how many Americans have the surname Pharris on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.