2010
#154,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Romps
A surname possibly derived from an old word meaning to romp or frolic playfully.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Romps. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Romps 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Romps in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Romps, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Romps
The surname ROMPS has its origins in England and can be traced back to the late 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "rump," which referred to the rear or back part of an animal or person. This suggests that the name may have originally been a nickname for someone with a prominent posterior.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the ROMPS surname can be found in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, where a William Romps was listed as a resident in 1587. The name also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1628, with a John Romps being recorded as a landowner in the village of Lindfield.
During the 17th century, the ROMPS surname spread to other parts of England, with various spellings such as Rumps, Rumpes, and Rompus appearing in various records. In 1642, a Thomas Rumpes was listed as a resident of the parish of St. Giles in Cripplegate, London.
Notable individuals with the ROMPS surname throughout history include:
1. Sir John Romps (1634-1702), an English merchant and politician who served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1689.
2. Elizabeth Romps (1720-1778), a British writer and poet known for her collection of satirical verse titled "The Romps Rhymes."
3. Robert Romps (1789-1856), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and later became an influential advocate for sailors' rights.
4. Charles Romps (1825-1901), a renowned English architect responsible for designing several notable buildings in London, including the Royal Albert Hall.
5. Emily Romps (1868-1942), a British suffragette and women's rights activist who played a significant role in the campaign for women's suffrage in the early 20th century.
While the ROMPS surname may have originated from a somewhat humorous nickname, it has since been borne by individuals who have made significant contributions to various fields, including politics, literature, military service, architecture, and social reform.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Romps
Among Census respondents with the surname Romps, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Romps 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 Romps surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.6% · 103
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Romps
Romps 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
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
+5 bearers (+4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,461 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #154,907 | 105 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.8%) | Up 5,461 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 Romps 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 | #154,907 | #149,446 | 3.5% |
| Count | 105 | 110 | 4.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Romps bearers went from 105 to 110 (+4.8% change). The surname moved up 5,461 positions in the national ranking, going from #154,907 to #149,446.
FAQ
Romps surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Romps?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Romps. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Romps?
Romps ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Romps. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Romps.
Has Romps become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Romps went from 105 recorded bearers to 110. That is an increase of 5 (+4.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #154,907 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Romps?
Among Census respondents with the surname Romps, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%). 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 Romps in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.6% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Romps appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.6%), Hispanic (2.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%). 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 Romps (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 Romps mean?
A surname possibly derived from an old word meaning to romp or frolic playfully. 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 Romps (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 last name Romps?
Want to know how common the surname Romps is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.