2000
#10,453
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,820
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.05
Rare Last name
Rigg
An English topographic surname denoting someone who lived near a ridge or steep hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,079 Americans carry the last name Rigg. That puts it at #11,256 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.90 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 111,320 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rigg 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 Rigg with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.1K
1 in 111,320
Census rank
#11,256
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,685 bearers of the surname Rigg in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.90 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11256th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigg, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rigg
The surname RIGG is of English origin and dates back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "hrycg," which means "ridge" or "hill." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name lived in areas characterized by ridges or hills.
The name RIGG was particularly prevalent in the northern counties of England, such as Yorkshire and Northumberland. It is thought to have originated as a topographic surname, describing the physical landscape where the first bearers of the name resided.
Historical records suggest that the RIGG surname can be traced back to the 13th century. One of the earliest known references to the name is found in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379, which mentions a John del Rigge.
In the 16th century, the RIGG surname was also documented in the Subsidy Rolls of Cumberland in 1547, where a Thomas Rigge was listed. This indicates that the name had spread to other parts of northern England by that time.
The RIGG surname has also been associated with various place names in England. For instance, the village of Riggindale in North Yorkshire is thought to have derived its name from the presence of early RIGG families in the area.
Notable individuals with the RIGG surname throughout history include:
1. John Rigg (1753-1808), an English poet and writer from Sunderland.
2. Jonathan Rigg (1795-1859), an English Methodist minister and author from Yorkshire.
3. William Rigg (1828-1909), an English solicitor and Liberal politician who served as a Member of Parliament.
4. James Rigg (1839-1920), an English classical scholar and headmaster of Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School in Wakefield.
5. Arthur Rigg (1860-1937), an English cricketer who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club.
While the RIGG surname has its roots in northern England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including North America and Australia, due to migration and settlement patterns.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rigg
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigg, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Rigg 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 Rigg surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.4% · 2,266
- Black or African American5.8% · 155
- Two or more races4.5% · 120
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 104
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 32
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rigg
Rigg 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
#11,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,783
-37 bearers (-1.3%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Down 886 places
2020
#11,256
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,685
-98 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Up 83 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,453 | 2,820 | 1.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,339 | 2,783 | 0.94 | -37 bearers (-1.3%) | Down 886 places |
| 2020 | #11,256 | 2,685 | 0.90 | -98 bearers (-3.5%) | Up 83 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 Rigg 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 | #11,339 | #11,256 | 0.7% |
| Count | 2,783 | 2,685 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.90 | -4.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rigg bearers went from 2,783 to 2,685 (-3.5% change). The surname moved up 83 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,339 to #11,256.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Rigg
FAQ
Rigg surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rigg?
Name Census estimates that about 3,079 living Americans carry the surname Rigg. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 111,320 residents.
How common is Rigg?
Rigg ranks #11,256 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.90 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 2,685 people with the surname Rigg. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,079), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.9 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.90 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 Rigg.
Has Rigg become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rigg went from 2,783 recorded bearers to 2,685. That is a decrease of 98 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,339 to #11,256.
What does the Census say about the background of Rigg?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigg, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Rigg in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.4% (2,266 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rigg appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.4%), Black (5.8%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Rigg (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 Rigg mean?
An English topographic surname denoting someone who lived near a ridge or steep hill. 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 Rigg (0.90 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 common is the surname Rigg?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Rigg, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.