2000
#5,351
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,994
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.22
Rare Last name
Phillip
Derived from the Greek name Philippos, meaning "friend of horses" or "horse-loving."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,914 Americans carry the last name Phillip. That puts it at #4,948 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 43,310 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Phillip 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 Phillip with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.9K
1 in 43,310
Census rank
#4,948
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,901 bearers of the surname Phillip in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4948th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Phillip, the largest self-reported group is Black at 54.5%. The next largest groups are White (22.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (10.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Phillip
The surname Phillip originated in Britain during the medieval period. It is derived from the personal name Phillip, which itself comes from the Greek name Philippos, meaning "lover of horses." The name was introduced to Britain by the Normans after the conquest of 1066.
One of the earliest records of the surname Phillip dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Philipus." This suggests that the name had already become established in England by the late 11th century.
In the 12th century, the surname Phillip is found in various records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1191, which mention a "Radulfus Philipp." Other early spellings of the name include "Philippe," "Philipe," and "Philipp."
The surname Phillip has been associated with several notable figures throughout history. One of the earliest was Sir John Phillip (c. 1340-1415), a Welsh soldier and landowner who fought in the Hundred Years' War. Another prominent individual was Sir Robert Phillip (c. 1587-1647), an English parliamentarian and supporter of the Parliamentary cause during the English Civil War.
In the literary world, John Phillip (1631-1709) was an English poet and writer best known for his work "The Splendid Shilling." Other notable bearers of the surname include William Phillip (1731-1781), a British naval officer and the first Governor of New South Wales, Australia, and Arthur Phillip (1738-1814), a British admiral and the first Governor of the colony of New South Wales.
The surname Phillip has also been associated with various place names, such as Phillip Island in Victoria, Australia, named after Arthur Phillip, and Phillip County, Kansas, named after William Phillip, the naval officer.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Phillip
Among Census respondents with the surname Phillip, the largest self-reported group is Black at 54.5%. The next largest groups are White (22.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (10.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Phillip 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 Phillip surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American54.5% · 3,759
- White22.9% · 1,582
- Asian and Pacific Islander10.2% · 707
- Two or more races4.6% · 314
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 290
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.6% · 249
Timeline
Historical Census data for Phillip
Phillip 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
#5,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,857
+863 bearers (+14.4%)
Per 100,000 2.32
Rank movement Up 243 places
2020
#4,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,901
+44 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 2.31
Rank movement Up 160 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,351 | 5,994 | 2.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,108 | 6,857 | 2.32 | +863 bearers (+14.4%) | Up 243 places |
| 2020 | #4,948 | 6,901 | 2.31 | +44 bearers (+0.6%) | Up 160 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 Phillip 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 | #5,108 | #4,948 | 3.1% |
| Count | 6,857 | 6,901 | 0.6% |
| Per 100K | 2.32 | 2.31 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Phillip bearers went from 6,857 to 6,901 (+0.6% change). The surname moved up 160 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,108 to #4,948.
FAQ
Phillip surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Phillip?
Name Census estimates that about 7,914 living Americans carry the surname Phillip. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 43,310 residents.
How common is Phillip?
Phillip ranks #4,948 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.31 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,901 people with the surname Phillip. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,914), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.31 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Phillip.
Has Phillip become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Phillip went from 6,857 recorded bearers to 6,901. That is an increase of 44 (+0.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,108 to #4,948.
What does the Census say about the background of Phillip?
Among Census respondents with the surname Phillip, the largest self-reported group is Black at 54.5%. The next largest groups are White (22.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (10.2%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Phillip in the 2020 Census, accounting for 54.5% (3,759 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Phillip appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (54.5%), White (22.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (10.2%). 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 Phillip (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 Phillip mean?
Derived from the Greek name Philippos, meaning "friend of horses" or "horse-loving." 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 Phillip (2.31 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 Phillip?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.