Plump last name popularity, history, and meaning

Find out how popular the last name Plump is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Plump.

Meaning of Plump

A descriptive surname referring to someone of stout or rounded build.

Plump, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Plump surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Plump in America

Plump is the 40016th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Plump surname appeared 548 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Plump.

We can also compare 2010 data for Plump to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

20102000Change (%)
Rank4001643377-8.06%
Count54846915.54%
Proportion per 100k0.190.1711.11%

The history of the last name Plump

The surname Plump is believed to have originated in England during the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. It is derived from the Middle English word "plomp," meaning stout or plump, which itself comes from the Old English word "plump." This suggests that the name was likely initially a descriptive nickname given to someone of a stout or plump build.

The earliest recorded instances of the Plump surname can be found in various historical documents from the 14th and 15th centuries. One notable example is the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire, which mention a John Plump in 1379. The Plump surname is also found in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379, suggesting a strong presence of the name in that region during that time period.

In the 16th century, the Plump surname appears in various parish records and manorial rolls across different parts of England. For instance, the Parish Registers of St. Mary's Church in Beverley, Yorkshire, contain entries for the Plump family dating back to the late 1500s. Additionally, the Subsidy Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1572 list a William Plump as a resident of the county.

One notable individual with the Plump surname was Sir Walter Plump (c. 1520-1605), a wealthy landowner and member of the gentry from Yorkshire. He served as a Justice of the Peace and was appointed High Sheriff of Yorkshire in 1580. Another early bearer of the name was Richard Plump (c. 1560-1635), a successful merchant and alderman in the City of London.

In the 17th century, the Plump surname can be found in various historical records, including the Hearth Tax Rolls of 1662-1666, which list several Plump households in different counties of England. One notable individual from this period was Sir Edward Plump (1622-1670), a member of the English gentry and a Royalist supporter during the English Civil War.

By the 18th century, the Plump surname had spread to other parts of the British Isles, including Scotland and Ireland. One notable Scottish bearer of the name was James Plump (1734-1810), a successful merchant and landowner in Edinburgh. In Ireland, the Plump surname can be found in various records from the late 18th and early 19th centuries, such as the Tithe Applotment Books and Griffith's Valuation.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Plump

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Plump.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

  1. White only
  2. Black only
  3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
  4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
  5. Hispanic
  6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Plump was:

Race/EthnicityPercentageTotal Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only38.69%212
Non-Hispanic Black Only58.03%318
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only0.00%0
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native0.00%0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races2.01%11
Hispanic Origin1.28%7

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Plump has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

20102000Change (%)
White38.69%40.72%-5.11%
Black58.03%56.29%3.04%
Asian and Pacific Islander0.00%(S)%(S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.00%0.00%0.00%
Two or More Races2.01%2.13%-5.80%
Hispanic1.28%(S)%(S)%

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Plump was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Plump, please contact us.

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