2000
#2,222
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,020
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.57
Uncommon Last name
Seals
An English occupational surname referring to a seal hunter or a person who worked with seals.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 17,554 Americans carry the last name Seals. That puts it at #2,324 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 19,526 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Seals 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 Seals with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
18K
1 in 19,526
Census rank
#2,324
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,308 bearers of the surname Seals in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2324th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Seals, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.3%. The next largest groups are Black (39.4%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Seals
The surname SEALS is of English origin and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "seolh," which means "seal" and refers to the marine mammal. This surname likely originated as a descriptive nickname for someone who worked with seals or had some physical resemblance to the animal.
The earliest known record of the SEALS surname dates back to the late 13th century. In the Hundred Rolls of Norfolk, compiled between 1273 and 1276, there is a mention of a person named Roger Sele, which is believed to be an early variant of the SEALS surname.
During the 14th century, the surname appeared in various forms, such as Selle, Sele, and Seel, reflecting the variations in spelling and pronunciation at the time. One notable example is John Sele, who was mentioned in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1334.
In the 15th century, the surname began to take on its more modern form, with the "s" added to the end. One of the earliest recorded instances of the SEALS spelling can be found in the Paston Letters, a collection of correspondence from the influential Paston family in Norfolk, where a person named William Seals is mentioned in a letter dated around 1472.
Over the centuries, the SEALS surname has been associated with several notable individuals. In the 16th century, there was John Seals (c. 1520 - c. 1590), an English landowner and farmer from Gloucestershire. In the 17th century, Samuel Seals (1640 - 1702) was a prominent merchant and philanthropist in London.
Moving into the 18th century, we find Thomas Seals (1708 - 1784), a British naval officer who served during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War. In the 19th century, Henry Seals (1830 - 1905) was a renowned English architect known for his work on churches and public buildings.
Another notable figure was Elizabeth Seals (1860 - 1942), an American educator and activist who played a significant role in the women's suffrage movement and the establishment of several educational institutions in the United States.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have borne the SEALS surname. While the name may have originated as a descriptive nickname, it has since become a proud part of many family histories and has left its mark on various fields and endeavors.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Seals
Among Census respondents with the surname Seals, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.3%. The next largest groups are Black (39.4%) and Two or More Races (5.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Seals 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 Seals surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White50.3% · 7,694
- Black or African American39.4% · 6,024
- Two or more races5.6% · 856
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 471
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 183
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 80
Timeline
Historical Census data for Seals
Seals 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
#2,299
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,858
+838 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 5.38
Rank movement Down 77 places
2020
#2,324
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,308
-550 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 5.12
Rank movement Down 25 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,222 | 15,020 | 5.57 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,299 | 15,858 | 5.38 | +838 bearers (+5.6%) | Down 77 places |
| 2020 | #2,324 | 15,308 | 5.12 | -550 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 25 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 Seals 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 | #2,299 | #2,324 | -1.1% |
| Count | 15,858 | 15,308 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 5.38 | 5.12 | -4.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Seals bearers went from 15,858 to 15,308 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 25 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,299 to #2,324.
FAQ
Seals surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Seals?
Name Census estimates that about 17,554 living Americans carry the surname Seals. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 19,526 residents.
How common is Seals?
Seals ranks #2,324 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.12 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 15,308 people with the surname Seals. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (17,554), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.12 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 Seals.
Has Seals become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Seals went from 15,858 recorded bearers to 15,308. That is a decrease of 550 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,299 to #2,324.
What does the Census say about the background of Seals?
Among Census respondents with the surname Seals, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.3%. The next largest groups are Black (39.4%) 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 Seals in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.3% (7,694 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Seals appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (50.3%), Black (39.4%), 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 Seals (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 Seals mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a seal hunter or a person who worked with seals. 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 Seals (5.12 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 Americans have the surname Seals?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.