2000
#9,998
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,974
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.10
Rare Last name
Pooler
An occupational surname for a keeper or owner of a pool or pond.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,370 Americans carry the last name Pooler. That puts it at #10,431 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 101,708 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pooler 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 Pooler with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.4K
1 in 101,708
Census rank
#10,431
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,939 bearers of the surname Pooler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10431st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pooler, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Black (17.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pooler
The surname Pooler is of English origin, emerging in the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words 'pol' meaning 'pool' or 'pond', and the occupational suffix '-er', indicating someone who lived near or worked with pools of water. The surname may have initially referred to a person who resided near a pool or pond, or one who was employed in maintaining or fishing in such bodies of water.
The earliest records of the surname Pooler date back to the 13th century, with variations in spelling such as Poler, Pooler, and Pullere appearing in various historical documents. One of the earliest instances is found in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, where a certain Robert le Poler is mentioned.
In the 14th century, the surname Pooler can be found in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in Yorkshire, which reference a William Poler in 1347. Additionally, the name is recorded in the Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire from 1379, where a John Poller is listed.
As the surname spread across England, it became associated with various place names that contained the word 'pool'. For example, in Staffordshire, the name Pooler was linked to the village of Pooley, which was originally known as 'Pol-eye', meaning 'pool on a stream'.
Notable historical figures bearing the surname Pooler include:
1. John Pooler (c. 1485 - 1558), an English clergyman and author who served as the Dean of Grantham.
2. Thomas Pooler (c. 1570 - 1640), a prominent merchant and landowner in the city of Bristol.
3. Elizabeth Pooler (1619 - 1688), one of the first female landowners in the American colony of Massachusetts.
4. William Pooler (1783 - 1862), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars and later became an admiral.
5. Henry Pooler (1825 - 1901), an English industrialist and philanthropist who founded the Pooler Textile Mills in Lancashire.
The surname Pooler has endured through the centuries, maintaining its connection to its English roots and the occupational significance associated with its origins. While the name may have evolved in spelling and pronunciation over time, its historical ties to bodies of water and place names continue to shape its meaning and legacy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pooler
Among Census respondents with the surname Pooler, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Black (17.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Pooler 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 Pooler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.0% · 2,146
- Black or African American17.3% · 507
- Two or more races5.0% · 146
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 93
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 26
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pooler
Pooler 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
#10,245
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,146
+172 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 247 places
2020
#10,431
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,939
-207 bearers (-6.6%)
Per 100,000 0.98
Rank movement Down 186 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,998 | 2,974 | 1.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,245 | 3,146 | 1.07 | +172 bearers (+5.8%) | Down 247 places |
| 2020 | #10,431 | 2,939 | 0.98 | -207 bearers (-6.6%) | Down 186 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 Pooler 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 | #10,245 | #10,431 | -1.8% |
| Count | 3,146 | 2,939 | -6.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.07 | 0.98 | -8.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pooler bearers went from 3,146 to 2,939 (-6.6% change). The surname moved down 186 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,245 to #10,431.
FAQ
Pooler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pooler?
Name Census estimates that about 3,370 living Americans carry the surname Pooler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 101,708 residents.
How common is Pooler?
Pooler ranks #10,431 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.98 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 2,939 people with the surname Pooler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,370), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.98 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 Pooler.
Has Pooler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pooler went from 3,146 recorded bearers to 2,939. That is a decrease of 207 (-6.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,245 to #10,431.
What does the Census say about the background of Pooler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pooler, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Black (17.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Pooler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.0% (2,146 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pooler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.0%), Black (17.3%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Pooler (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 Pooler mean?
An occupational surname for a keeper or owner of a pool or pond. 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 Pooler (0.98 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 have the last name Pooler?
Find out how many people have the last name Pooler on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.