2000
#7,683
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,996
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.48
Rare Last name
Renfrow
An English locational surname derived from a place meaning "raven tree" or "raven wood."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,360 Americans carry the last name Renfrow. That puts it at #8,340 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.27 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 78,613 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Renfrow 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
4.4K
1 in 78,613
Census rank
#8,340
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,802 bearers of the surname Renfrow in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.27 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8340th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Renfrow, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.1%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Renfrow
The surname Renfrow has its origins in the English language and traces back to medieval times. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "rǣn" meaning "rain" and "frōg" meaning "frog," suggesting the name may have referred to someone who lived near a rainy or marshy area where frogs were abundant.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire, England, from 1327, which mentions a John Raynfrogh. The name appeared with various spellings in historical records, such as Raynfrogh, Rainfrogh, and Renfro, before settling into its modern form of Renfrow.
The Renfrow surname was particularly prominent in the counties of Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, and Herefordshire in the West Midlands region of England. Some early bearers of the name included William Raynfrogh, born in 1412 in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, and Thomas Renfro, born in 1508 in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, as the Renfrow family began to spread across England, several notable individuals with this surname emerged. One such person was John Renfrow, a merchant and landowner from Bristol, who lived from 1539 to 1612. Another was Edward Renfrow, a clergyman and author born in 1625 in Oxfordshire, who published several theological works.
As the British Empire expanded, the Renfrow name also found its way to the American colonies in the 17th and 18th centuries. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of William Renfrow, who was born in Virginia in 1685 and served in the colonial militia during the French and Indian War.
In the 19th century, a prominent bearer of the Renfrow name was Samuel Renfrow, a Baptist minister and educator from Tennessee, who lived from 1803 to 1885 and played a significant role in establishing several educational institutions in the Southern United States.
Another notable individual was Josiah Renfrow, an American businessman and politician from Arkansas, who was born in 1839 and served as a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives in the late 19th century.
Throughout its long history, the Renfrow surname has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, from merchants and clergymen to politicians and educators, reflecting the diverse experiences and contributions of those who have borne this name over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Renfrow
Among Census respondents with the surname Renfrow, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.1%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Renfrow 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 Renfrow surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.0% · 3,309
- Black or African American5.1% · 194
- Two or more races4.0% · 151
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 92
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 31
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 25
Timeline
Historical Census data for Renfrow
Renfrow 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
#8,337
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,972
-24 bearers (-0.6%)
Per 100,000 1.35
Rank movement Down 654 places
2020
#8,340
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,802
-170 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 1.27
Rank movement Down 3 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,683 | 3,996 | 1.48 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,337 | 3,972 | 1.35 | -24 bearers (-0.6%) | Down 654 places |
| 2020 | #8,340 | 3,802 | 1.27 | -170 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 3 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 Renfrow 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 | #8,337 | #8,340 | -0.0% |
| Count | 3,972 | 3,802 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.35 | 1.27 | -5.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Renfrow bearers went from 3,972 to 3,802 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 3 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,337 to #8,340.
FAQ
Renfrow surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Renfrow?
Name Census estimates that about 4,360 living Americans carry the surname Renfrow. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 78,613 residents.
How common is Renfrow?
Renfrow ranks #8,340 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.27 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 3,802 people with the surname Renfrow. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,360), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.27 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.27 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 Renfrow.
Has Renfrow become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Renfrow went from 3,972 recorded bearers to 3,802. That is a decrease of 170 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,337 to #8,340.
What does the Census say about the background of Renfrow?
Among Census respondents with the surname Renfrow, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.1%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Renfrow in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.0% (3,309 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Renfrow appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.0%), Black (5.1%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Renfrow (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 Renfrow mean?
An English locational surname derived from a place meaning "raven tree" or "raven wood." 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 Renfrow (1.27 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 are called Renfrow?
See how many Americans have the surname Renfrow on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.