2010
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Purin
A surname possibly originating from the French word "purin" meaning liquid manure or sewage.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Purin. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Purin 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.
Bearers in the US
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Purin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Purin, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.1%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Purin
The surname PURIN originated in the region of Normandy in northern France during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French word "pur," meaning "pure" or "clean," suggesting that the name may have initially referred to someone of upstanding moral character or possibly a profession related to cleanliness.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name PURIN can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landowners and tenants commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The entry mentions a landowner named Radulfus Purin, indicating the surname's presence in Normandy during the 11th century.
Throughout the Middle Ages, various spellings of the name emerged, such as Puryn, Purein, and Puran, reflecting the fluid nature of surname spellings during that era. These variations were often influenced by regional dialects and the preferences of scribes who recorded the names.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named Geoffroy PURIN was a French nobleman and military commander who participated in the Crusades. He was born around 1210 and died in 1278, leaving behind a legacy as a brave knight and skilled strategist.
During the Renaissance period, the PURIN surname gained prominence in France and beyond. One notable figure was Étienne PURIN, a French philosopher and scholar born in 1525. He was renowned for his contributions to the study of ethics and moral philosophy.
In the 17th century, the name spread to other parts of Europe, including England and the Netherlands. A Dutch merchant named Jan PURIN, born in 1645, was known for his successful trading ventures and philanthropic efforts in Amsterdam.
Another prominent individual with the PURIN surname was Marie PURIN, a French painter and artist born in 1780. She gained recognition for her exquisite portraits and landscape paintings, which were widely celebrated during the Romantic era.
Throughout history, the PURIN surname has been associated with various professions, from military leaders and scholars to artists and merchants. While its origins can be traced back to medieval Normandy, the name has since spread across Europe and beyond, carrying with it a rich legacy and diverse stories.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Purin
Among Census respondents with the surname Purin, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.1%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Purin 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 Purin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.6% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino6.1% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.6% · 3
- Two or more races2.6% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Purin
Purin appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-4 bearers (-3.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,355 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -4 bearers (-3.4%) | Down 5,355 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 Purin 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 | #141,140 | #146,495 | -3.8% |
| Count | 118 | 114 | -3.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Purin bearers went from 118 to 114 (-3.4% change). The surname moved down 5,355 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #146,495.
FAQ
Purin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Purin?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Purin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Purin?
Purin ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 114 people with the surname Purin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Purin.
Has Purin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Purin went from 118 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 4 (-3.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Purin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Purin, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.1%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Purin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.6% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Purin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.6%), Hispanic (6.1%), American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Purin (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 Purin mean?
A surname possibly originating from the French word "purin" meaning liquid manure or sewage. 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 Purin (0.04 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 Purin?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.