2000
#11,910
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,407
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.89
Rare Last name
Polly
A diminutive form of the given name Mary or a nickname for a talkative person, from the word "poll" meaning "head."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,657 Americans carry the last name Polly. That puts it at #12,722 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 129,001 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Polly 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 Polly with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 129,001
Census rank
#12,722
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,317 bearers of the surname Polly in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12722nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Polly, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.2%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Polly
The surname Polly has its origins in England, tracing back to the 13th century. It is believed to be a patronymic or locational name, deriving from the Old English word "poll" or "pol", meaning "pool" or "stream".
In medieval times, the name may have referred to someone who lived near a pool or stream, or it could have been an occupational name for someone who worked in a pool-related profession, such as fishing or maintaining waterways. The earliest known record of the surname Polly dates back to 1273, when a William Polle was mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire.
The name appears in various historical records throughout the centuries, including the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, where a John Polly is listed. In the 15th century, the spelling of the name varied, with forms like "Pooley" and "Polay" appearing in documents.
One notable early bearer of the surname was Robert Polley, a merchant from Bristol, England, who was born around 1500. He is mentioned in records from the 16th century for his trading activities in the city.
In the 17th century, the Polly surname can be found in parish records across various counties in England, including Yorkshire, Gloucestershire, and Wiltshire. During this period, the name was also associated with several place names, such as Polly Hall in Wiltshire and Polly Brook in Gloucestershire.
A prominent figure with the surname Polly was Sir John Pollexfen Polly (1638-1702), an English judge and Member of Parliament. He served as Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas from 1688 to 1702.
Another notable bearer of the name was William Polly (1700-1782), an English watchmaker and inventor from London. He is credited with developing a method for compensating for temperature changes in pocket watches, which greatly improved their accuracy.
In the 19th century, the Polly surname was borne by several individuals of note, including Richard Polly (1785-1861), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars, and Charles Polly (1810-1892), an English architect known for his work on churches and public buildings in London.
Throughout its history, the surname Polly has been carried by numerous individuals across various fields and professions, with its roots firmly grounded in the English language and the country's rich cultural heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Polly
Among Census respondents with the surname Polly, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.2%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Polly 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 Polly surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.6% · 1,913
- Black or African American9.2% · 214
- Two or more races4.4% · 102
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 57
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Polly
Polly 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
#11,946
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,617
+210 bearers (+8.7%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Down 36 places
2020
#12,722
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,317
-300 bearers (-11.5%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 776 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,910 | 2,407 | 0.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,946 | 2,617 | 0.89 | +210 bearers (+8.7%) | Down 36 places |
| 2020 | #12,722 | 2,317 | 0.78 | -300 bearers (-11.5%) | Down 776 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 Polly 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 | #11,946 | #12,722 | -6.5% |
| Count | 2,617 | 2,317 | -11.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.78 | -12.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Polly bearers went from 2,617 to 2,317 (-11.5% change). The surname moved down 776 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,946 to #12,722.
FAQ
Polly surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Polly?
Name Census estimates that about 2,657 living Americans carry the surname Polly. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 129,001 residents.
How common is Polly?
Polly ranks #12,722 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.78 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,317 people with the surname Polly. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,657), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.78 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Polly.
Has Polly become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Polly went from 2,617 recorded bearers to 2,317. That is a decrease of 300 (-11.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,946 to #12,722.
What does the Census say about the background of Polly?
Among Census respondents with the surname Polly, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.2%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Polly in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.6% (1,913 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Polly appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.6%), Black (9.2%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Polly (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 Polly mean?
A diminutive form of the given name Mary or a nickname for a talkative person, from the word "poll" meaning "head." 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 Polly (0.78 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 Americans have the surname Polly?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.