2000
#22,570
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,063
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.39
Rare Last name
Phillis
A surname possibly derived from the Greek name "Phillis," meaning "lover of horses or foliage."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,165 Americans carry the last name Phillis. That puts it at #25,489 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 294,210 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Phillis 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 Phillis with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.2K
1 in 294,210
Census rank
#25,489
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,016 bearers of the surname Phillis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 25489th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Phillis, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Phillis
The surname PHILLIS originated in England during the late medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the personal name Philip, which was quite popular among early Christians and came from the Greek word "philos," meaning lover of horses. The surname likely emerged as a way to distinguish individuals with the same first name.
PHILLIS is thought to have first appeared in written records in the 13th century, with variations in spelling such as Phillipps, Phillipes, and Phillipps. One of the earliest documented instances was in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which listed a Robert Philips in Oxfordshire.
During the 14th century, the surname PHILLIS gained prominence in various regions of England, including Shropshire, Gloucestershire, and Somerset. It was also found in the Subsidy Rolls of 1327, listing individuals like John Philips in Worcestershire and Walter Philips in Gloucestershire.
In the 15th century, the surname PHILLIS appeared in the Patent Rolls of 1429, where a Thomas Philips was mentioned in connection with land transactions in Warwickshire. The name was also present in the Paston Letters, a collection of correspondence from the influential Paston family of Norfolk, dating back to the 1400s.
Notable individuals with the surname PHILLIS throughout history include:
1. John Philips (1676-1709), an English poet and writer best known for his work "The Splendid Shilling."
2. Samuel Philips (1555-1619), an English clergyman and author who served as the vicar of Bromyard, Herefordshire.
3. Edward Philips (1630-1696), an English writer and nephew of the poet John Milton. He wrote several works, including "The New World of English Words" and "The Mysteries of Love and Eloquence."
4. William Philips (1775-1828), an English geologist and mineralogist who made significant contributions to the study of mineralogy and crystallography.
5. John Philips (1801-1887), an English geologist and writer who authored works such as "Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great Britain" and "Life on the Earth."
The surname PHILLIS has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Phillipshill in Buckinghamshire, Phillipston in Gloucestershire, and Phillipstown in Kent.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Phillis
Among Census respondents with the surname Phillis, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Phillis 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 Phillis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.4% · 868
- Black or African American8.4% · 85
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 26
- Two or more races2.5% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Phillis
Phillis 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
#24,431
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,025
-38 bearers (-3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.35
Rank movement Down 1,861 places
2020
#25,489
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,016
-9 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.34
Rank movement Down 1,058 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #22,570 | 1,063 | 0.39 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #24,431 | 1,025 | 0.35 | -38 bearers (-3.6%) | Down 1,861 places |
| 2020 | #25,489 | 1,016 | 0.34 | -9 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 1,058 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 Phillis 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 | #24,431 | #25,489 | -4.3% |
| Count | 1,025 | 1,016 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.35 | 0.34 | -2.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Phillis bearers went from 1,025 to 1,016 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 1,058 positions in the national ranking, going from #24,431 to #25,489.
FAQ
Phillis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Phillis?
Name Census estimates that about 1,165 living Americans carry the surname Phillis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 294,210 residents.
How common is Phillis?
Phillis ranks #25,489 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.34 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 1,016 people with the surname Phillis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,165), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.34 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 Phillis.
Has Phillis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Phillis went from 1,025 recorded bearers to 1,016. That is a decrease of 9 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #24,431 to #25,489.
What does the Census say about the background of Phillis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Phillis, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Phillis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.4% (868 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Phillis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.4%), Black (8.4%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Phillis (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 Phillis mean?
A surname possibly derived from the Greek name "Phillis," meaning "lover of horses or foliage." 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 Phillis (0.34 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 Phillis?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Phillis, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.