2000
#2,158
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,446
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.73
Uncommon Last name
Sams
Derived from the given name Samuel, meaning "name of God" or "God has heard" in Hebrew.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 17,449 Americans carry the last name Sams. That puts it at #2,330 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 19,643 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sams 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 Sams with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
17K
1 in 19,643
Census rank
#2,330
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,216 bearers of the surname Sams in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2330th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sams, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sams
The surname SAMS originated in England during the late medieval period, derived from the personal name Samuel, itself stemming from the Hebrew name Shmuel meaning "name of God". The earliest recorded instances of the SAMS surname can be traced back to the 13th century in various counties across southern England.
In historical documents from the 14th and 15th centuries, the surname appeared with various spelling variations such as Samms, Sammes, and Sames, reflecting the inconsistencies in written English at the time. One notable early bearer of the SAMS name was John Sams, a merchant from Bristol recorded in tax rolls from 1379.
The SAMS surname is thought to have originated as an occupational name, initially referring to someone employed as a servant or attendant, potentially derived from the Old English word "sam" meaning "half" or "servant". This occupational connection may also explain the presence of SAMS families in areas like Gloucestershire and Wiltshire, where large manors and estates were prevalent.
In the 16th century, parish records from Devonshire mention a Richard Sams born in 1587, while in Sussex, the SAMS name was associated with the village of Sams Place near Mayfield, suggesting a possible toponymic origin related to a specific location.
Notable individuals bearing the SAMS surname throughout history include:
1. William Sams (1576-1628), an English clergyman and translator of the Geneva Bible.
2. John Sams (1662-1732), a successful merchant and landowner from Wiltshire.
3. Elizabeth Sams (1692-1778), a pioneering Quaker minister and writer from Pennsylvania.
4. Joseph Sams (1786-1867), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars.
5. Henry Sams (1844-1909), an American businessman and politician who served as Mayor of New Orleans from 1896 to 1900.
While the SAMS surname may have originated from humble beginnings, its widespread presence across England and beyond over the centuries attests to its enduring legacy as a notable family name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sams
Among Census respondents with the surname Sams, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Sams 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 Sams surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.0% · 10,956
- Black or African American19.4% · 2,958
- Two or more races4.3% · 656
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 429
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 115
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 102
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sams
Sams 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
#2,275
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,014
+568 bearers (+3.7%)
Per 100,000 5.43
Rank movement Down 117 places
2020
#2,330
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,216
-798 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 5.09
Rank movement Down 55 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,158 | 15,446 | 5.73 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,275 | 16,014 | 5.43 | +568 bearers (+3.7%) | Down 117 places |
| 2020 | #2,330 | 15,216 | 5.09 | -798 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 55 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 Sams 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 | #2,275 | #2,330 | -2.4% |
| Count | 16,014 | 15,216 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 5.43 | 5.09 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sams bearers went from 16,014 to 15,216 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 55 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,275 to #2,330.
FAQ
Sams surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sams?
Name Census estimates that about 17,449 living Americans carry the surname Sams. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 19,643 residents.
How common is Sams?
Sams ranks #2,330 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.09 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,216 people with the surname Sams. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (17,449), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.09 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Sams.
Has Sams become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sams went from 16,014 recorded bearers to 15,216. That is a decrease of 798 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,275 to #2,330.
What does the Census say about the background of Sams?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sams, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Sams in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.0% (10,956 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sams appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.0%), Black (19.4%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Sams (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 Sams mean?
Derived from the given name Samuel, meaning "name of God" or "God has heard" in Hebrew. 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 Sams (5.09 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 Sams?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.