2000
#6,298
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,980
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.85
Rare Last name
Showers
An occupational surname for someone who manufactured or installed showers or baths, or lived near a waterfall.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,784 Americans carry the last name Showers. That puts it at #6,474 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 59,259 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Showers 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
5.8K
1 in 59,259
Census rank
#6,474
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,044 bearers of the surname Showers in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6474th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Showers, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.3%. The next largest groups are Black (23.0%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Showers
The surname Showers is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "scur" or "shur," meaning a temporary shelter or cover. This name likely originated in the Middle Ages, referring to someone who lived near a temporary shelter or shed.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Showers surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from the year 1230, where a person named Robert del Shuris is mentioned. This suggests that variations of the name, such as "Shuris" or "Shures," existed in the 13th century.
In the 14th century, the Showers surname appeared in various forms, including "Shour," "Shoure," and "Showere," as evidenced by records from Norfolk and Suffolk counties. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and spelling variations common during that time.
The Showers surname is also linked to certain place names, particularly in Yorkshire, where places like Showers Hill and Showers Farm existed. This connection to geographical locations further reinforces the origin of the name as referring to someone living near a temporary shelter or shed.
Notable individuals with the Showers surname throughout history include:
1. William Showers (1590-1660), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Wootton Bassett in the 17th century.
2. John Showers (1615-1692), an English Baptist minister and writer who published several religious works during the 17th century.
3. Sir George Showers (1720-1795), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the 18th century and participated in several notable battles.
4. Benjamin Showers (1742-1828), an American Quaker minister and abolitionist who advocated against slavery and worked to establish schools for African Americans.
5. Emily Showers (1847-1926), an American educator and women's rights activist who worked to promote higher education opportunities for women in the late 19th century.
These examples illustrate the historical presence of the Showers surname across various professions and fields, including politics, religion, military service, and social activism.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Showers
Among Census respondents with the surname Showers, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.3%. The next largest groups are Black (23.0%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Showers 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 Showers surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.3% · 3,545
- Black or African American23.0% · 1,162
- Two or more races3.2% · 159
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 135
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Showers
Showers 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
#6,551
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,171
+191 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 1.75
Rank movement Down 253 places
2020
#6,474
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,044
-127 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 1.69
Rank movement Up 77 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,298 | 4,980 | 1.85 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,551 | 5,171 | 1.75 | +191 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 253 places |
| 2020 | #6,474 | 5,044 | 1.69 | -127 bearers (-2.5%) | Up 77 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 Showers 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 | #6,551 | #6,474 | 1.2% |
| Count | 5,171 | 5,044 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.75 | 1.69 | -3.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Showers bearers went from 5,171 to 5,044 (-2.5% change). The surname moved up 77 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,551 to #6,474.
FAQ
Showers surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Showers?
Name Census estimates that about 5,784 living Americans carry the surname Showers. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 59,259 residents.
How common is Showers?
Showers ranks #6,474 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.69 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 5,044 people with the surname Showers. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,784), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.69 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 Showers.
Has Showers become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Showers went from 5,171 recorded bearers to 5,044. That is a decrease of 127 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,551 to #6,474.
What does the Census say about the background of Showers?
Among Census respondents with the surname Showers, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.3%. The next largest groups are Black (23.0%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Showers in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.3% (3,545 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Showers appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.3%), Black (23.0%), Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Showers (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 Showers mean?
An occupational surname for someone who manufactured or installed showers or baths, or lived near a waterfall. 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 Showers (1.69 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 Showers?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Showers at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.