2000
#21,848
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.41
Rare Last name
Rigsbee
From a place name referring to a ridge or hill between two bodies of water.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,294 Americans carry the last name Rigsbee. That puts it at #23,249 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 264,880 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rigsbee 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
1.3K
1 in 264,880
Census rank
#23,249
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,128 bearers of the surname Rigsbee in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 23249th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigsbee, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.0%. The next largest groups are Black (10.1%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rigsbee
The surname Rigsbee has its origins in England, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "ric" meaning rich or powerful, and "by" meaning a town or village, indicating that the name likely referred to someone from a prosperous settlement.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Chelmsford, Essex, in 1587, where a John Rigsbee was listed as a resident. It's possible that the family hailed from the village of Rissbygate, which no longer exists but was located near Bury St. Edmunds in Suffolk.
In the 17th century, the surname appeared in various spellings such as Rigsby, Riggesbie, and Rigsbye, reflecting the inconsistencies in record-keeping and spelling conventions of the time. One notable figure from this era was William Rigsbee, a merchant and landowner who lived in London in the 1650s.
As the Rigsbee family spread across England, they left their mark in different regions. In the 18th century, a branch of the family settled in the Yorkshire area, with records showing a Thomas Rigsbee born in 1723 in the village of Ripley.
The 19th century saw the name gaining prominence, with several individuals making their mark. One such figure was John Rigsbee (1798-1873), a successful businessman and philanthropist from Birmingham, who established a trust fund for the education of underprivileged children.
Another notable Rigsbee was Elizabeth Rigsbee (1815-1892), a renowned author and poet from Bristol, whose works focused on the lives of working-class families and social issues of the time.
Across the Atlantic, the Rigsbee surname can be traced back to the early days of American colonization. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of Richard Rigsbee, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 as an indentured servant.
In the subsequent centuries, the Rigsbee family spread across various parts of the United States, with notable individuals emerging in different fields. One such figure was Samuel Rigsbee (1779-1854), a prominent lawyer and judge in North Carolina, who played a significant role in shaping the state's legal system.
Another notable American Rigsbee was Elizabeth Rigsbee (1871-1947), a pioneering educator and advocate for women's rights, who founded one of the first schools for girls in the state of Georgia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rigsbee
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigsbee, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.0%. The next largest groups are Black (10.1%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Rigsbee 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 Rigsbee surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.0% · 914
- Black or African American10.1% · 114
- Two or more races5.6% · 63
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rigsbee
Rigsbee 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
#22,503
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,143
+34 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 0.39
Rank movement Down 655 places
2020
#23,249
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,128
-15 bearers (-1.3%)
Per 100,000 0.38
Rank movement Down 746 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #21,848 | 1,109 | 0.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #22,503 | 1,143 | 0.39 | +34 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 655 places |
| 2020 | #23,249 | 1,128 | 0.38 | -15 bearers (-1.3%) | Down 746 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 Rigsbee 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 | #22,503 | #23,249 | -3.3% |
| Count | 1,143 | 1,128 | -1.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.39 | 0.38 | -3.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rigsbee bearers went from 1,143 to 1,128 (-1.3% change). The surname moved down 746 positions in the national ranking, going from #22,503 to #23,249.
FAQ
Rigsbee surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rigsbee?
Name Census estimates that about 1,294 living Americans carry the surname Rigsbee. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 264,880 residents.
How common is Rigsbee?
Rigsbee ranks #23,249 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.38 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 1,128 people with the surname Rigsbee. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,294), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.38 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 Rigsbee.
Has Rigsbee become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rigsbee went from 1,143 recorded bearers to 1,128. That is a decrease of 15 (-1.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #22,503 to #23,249.
What does the Census say about the background of Rigsbee?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rigsbee, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.0%. The next largest groups are Black (10.1%) and Two or More Races (5.6%). 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 Rigsbee in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.0% (914 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rigsbee appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.0%), Black (10.1%), Two or More Races (5.6%). 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 Rigsbee (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 Rigsbee mean?
From a place name referring to a ridge or hill between two bodies of water. 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 Rigsbee (0.38 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 Rigsbee?
See how many people have the surname Rigsbee on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.