2000
#3,243
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.75
Uncommon Last name
Shore
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near the seashore or a rocky slope.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,917 Americans carry the last name Shore. That puts it at #3,637 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 31,396 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shore 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 Shore with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 31,396
Census rank
#3,637
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.5K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,520 bearers of the surname Shore in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3637th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shore, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shore
The surname Shore is of English origin, deriving from the Old English word "scor" meaning a shore, bank, or coastline. It is thought to have emerged as a topographic name given to individuals who resided near a shoreline or coastal area.
The earliest known records of the name Shore date back to the late 12th century, with references found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire and Yorkshire from 1194. It is likely that the name originated in these coastal regions of England.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are several listings of place names that may have influenced the surname Shore, such as Shorwell in the Isle of Wight and Shoreswood in Staffordshire.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was William de la Shore, a landowner recorded in the Feet of Fines for Yorkshire in 1203. Another early mention is that of Robert atte Shore, listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296.
Notable individuals with the surname Shore throughout history include John Shore (1751-1834), a British colonial administrator who served as the Governor-General of India from 1793 to 1798. Another prominent figure was Sir John Shore Bt. (1662-1752), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for East Grinstead.
In literature, the name Shore appears in works such as the medieval poem "Piers Plowman" by William Langland, where a character named "Shores Wyf" is mentioned. The surname is also associated with Jane Shore (c. 1445-1527), a mistress of King Edward IV of England, whose life inspired several literary works.
Other historical figures include the English architect William Shore Jr. (1591-1668), who designed several notable buildings in London, and John Shore (1670-1737), an English writer and translator known for his work on Latin and Greek texts.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shore
Among Census respondents with the surname Shore, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Shore 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 Shore surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.7% · 8,631
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 272
- Two or more races2.9% · 272
- Black or African American2.1% · 204
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 85
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 56
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shore
Shore 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
#3,523
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,130
+10 bearers (+0.1%)
Per 100,000 3.43
Rank movement Down 280 places
2020
#3,637
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,520
-610 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 3.19
Rank movement Down 114 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,243 | 10,120 | 3.75 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,523 | 10,130 | 3.43 | +10 bearers (+0.1%) | Down 280 places |
| 2020 | #3,637 | 9,520 | 3.19 | -610 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 114 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 Shore 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 | #3,523 | #3,637 | -3.2% |
| Count | 10,130 | 9,520 | -6.0% |
| Per 100K | 3.43 | 3.19 | -7.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shore bearers went from 10,130 to 9,520 (-6.0% change). The surname moved down 114 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,523 to #3,637.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Shore
FAQ
Shore surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shore?
Name Census estimates that about 10,917 living Americans carry the surname Shore. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 31,396 residents.
How common is Shore?
Shore ranks #3,637 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.19 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,520 people with the surname Shore. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,917), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.19 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Shore.
Has Shore become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shore went from 10,130 recorded bearers to 9,520. That is a decrease of 610 (-6.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,523 to #3,637.
What does the Census say about the background of Shore?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shore, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Shore in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.7% (8,631 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shore appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.7%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Shore (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 Shore mean?
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near the seashore or a rocky slope. 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 Shore (3.19 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 common is the surname Shore?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Shore at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.