2000
#8,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,591
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.33
Rare Last name
Pumphrey
An English occupational surname referring to someone who operated or worked at a pump or well.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,023 Americans carry the last name Pumphrey. That puts it at #8,951 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 85,199 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pumphrey 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 Pumphrey with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 85,199
Census rank
#8,951
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,508 bearers of the surname Pumphrey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8951st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pumphrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.2%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pumphrey
The surname Pumphrey is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "pump" and "hreaw," which translates to "pump stream" or "stream flowing from a spring." This suggests that the name may have been initially associated with those who lived near a spring or a stream.
The earliest known record of the name Pumphrey can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Pumfrid." This entry indicates that the name was present in England during the Norman Conquest and the subsequent compilation of the Domesday Book.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name was primarily concentrated in the counties of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, with various spellings such as Pumfrey, Pumfry, and Pumphrye appearing in historical documents from these regions.
One notable bearer of the name was Sir William Pumphrey, a knight who fought alongside King Edward III during the Hundred Years' War in the 14th century. Another individual of significance was John Pumphrey, a merchant and alderman in the city of York during the 16th century.
In the 17th century, the name Pumphrey was associated with the village of Pumphrey's Green in Oxfordshire, which likely derived its name from a family residing in the area. This connection to a place name further solidifies the surname's ties to geographical features.
During the 18th century, a prominent figure bearing the name was Jonathan Pumphrey (1701-1779), a British politician and Member of Parliament for Retford in Nottinghamshire.
In the 19th century, the Pumphrey surname gained recognition with the birth of James Pumphrey (1823-1903), a renowned English architect who designed several notable buildings in London and other parts of England.
As the centuries progressed, the name Pumphrey continued to be found across various regions of England, with some families migrating to other parts of the world, carrying the surname with them.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pumphrey
Among Census respondents with the surname Pumphrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.2%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Pumphrey 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 Pumphrey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.5% · 2,683
- Black or African American15.2% · 533
- Two or more races4.2% · 148
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 111
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 16
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pumphrey
Pumphrey 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
#8,749
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,749
+158 bearers (+4.4%)
Per 100,000 1.27
Rank movement Down 300 places
2020
#8,951
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,508
-241 bearers (-6.4%)
Per 100,000 1.17
Rank movement Down 202 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,449 | 3,591 | 1.33 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,749 | 3,749 | 1.27 | +158 bearers (+4.4%) | Down 300 places |
| 2020 | #8,951 | 3,508 | 1.17 | -241 bearers (-6.4%) | Down 202 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 Pumphrey 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 | #8,749 | #8,951 | -2.3% |
| Count | 3,749 | 3,508 | -6.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.27 | 1.17 | -7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pumphrey bearers went from 3,749 to 3,508 (-6.4% change). The surname moved down 202 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,749 to #8,951.
FAQ
Pumphrey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pumphrey?
Name Census estimates that about 4,023 living Americans carry the surname Pumphrey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 85,199 residents.
How common is Pumphrey?
Pumphrey ranks #8,951 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.17 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 3,508 people with the surname Pumphrey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,023), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.17 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 Pumphrey.
Has Pumphrey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pumphrey went from 3,749 recorded bearers to 3,508. That is a decrease of 241 (-6.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,749 to #8,951.
What does the Census say about the background of Pumphrey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pumphrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.2%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Pumphrey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.5% (2,683 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pumphrey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.5%), Black (15.2%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Pumphrey (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 Pumphrey mean?
An English occupational surname referring to someone who operated or worked at a pump or well. 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 Pumphrey (1.17 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 surname Pumphrey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.