2000
#5,043
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,384
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.37
Rare Last name
Scribner
An occupational surname referring to a professional scribe or clerk.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,963 Americans carry the last name Scribner. That puts it at #5,536 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 49,225 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Scribner 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
7.0K
1 in 49,225
Census rank
#5,536
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,072 bearers of the surname Scribner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5536th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Scribner, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Scribner
The surname Scribner originated in England during the medieval period. It is an occupational name derived from the Old English word "scriveyn," meaning a scribe or clerk. These individuals were responsible for transcribing official documents, legal papers, and manuscripts in an era when literacy was rare.
The earliest known record of the Scribner surname dates back to the 13th century in the county of Oxfordshire, where the name was spelled various ways, including Scrivener, Screveyn, and Scryveyn. This region was a hub for monastic communities, where scribes were often employed to copy religious texts and maintain records.
In the 14th century, the Scribner name appeared in the Hundredorum Rolls of Bedfordshire, an ancient tax record documenting landowners and freeholders. This provides evidence of the surname's establishment in different parts of England during the Middle Ages.
One of the earliest known individuals with the Scribner surname was Richard Scrivener, who was born in Buckinghamshire around 1370. He worked as a clerk for the local manor and was mentioned in several land deeds and court records from that era.
In the 16th century, the surname gained prominence with the rise of the printing industry. John Scribner (1516-1589) was a renowned printer and publisher based in London, known for his high-quality publications and innovative printing techniques. His son, Roger Scribner (1548-1612), also followed in his footsteps as a respected printer and bookseller.
Another notable figure was Thomas Scribner (1617-1694), a Puritan minister from Suffolk who emigrated to New England in the 1630s. He became one of the founders of the town of Hampton, New Hampshire, and served as the community's first minister for over 40 years.
In the 18th century, William Scribner (1738-1809) was a prominent merchant and landowner from Pennsylvania. He played a significant role in the American Revolutionary War, supplying provisions to the Continental Army and serving as a representative in the state legislature.
As the centuries passed, the Scribner surname spread across the English-speaking world, with many descendants settling in various parts of the United States, Canada, and other former British colonies.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Scribner
Among Census respondents with the surname Scribner, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Scribner 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 Scribner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.6% · 5,261
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 260
- Two or more races3.8% · 228
- Black or African American3.6% · 217
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 66
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 40
Timeline
Historical Census data for Scribner
Scribner 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
#5,311
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,558
+174 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 2.22
Rank movement Down 268 places
2020
#5,536
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,072
-486 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 2.03
Rank movement Down 225 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,043 | 6,384 | 2.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,311 | 6,558 | 2.22 | +174 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 268 places |
| 2020 | #5,536 | 6,072 | 2.03 | -486 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 225 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 Scribner 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 | #5,311 | #5,536 | -4.2% |
| Count | 6,558 | 6,072 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.22 | 2.03 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Scribner bearers went from 6,558 to 6,072 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 225 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,311 to #5,536.
FAQ
Scribner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Scribner?
Name Census estimates that about 6,963 living Americans carry the surname Scribner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 49,225 residents.
How common is Scribner?
Scribner ranks #5,536 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,072 people with the surname Scribner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,963), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Scribner.
Has Scribner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Scribner went from 6,558 recorded bearers to 6,072. That is a decrease of 486 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,311 to #5,536.
What does the Census say about the background of Scribner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Scribner, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Scribner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.6% (5,261 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Scribner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.6%), Hispanic (4.3%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Scribner (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 Scribner mean?
An occupational surname referring to a professional scribe or clerk. 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 Scribner (2.03 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 Scribner?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.