2000
#2,566
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,963
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.81
Uncommon Last name
Snodgrass
An English topographic surname denoting someone who lived near a grassy hill or near the grass-covered village green.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 13,715 Americans carry the last name Snodgrass. That puts it at #2,945 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.00 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 24,991 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Snodgrass 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 Snodgrass with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
14K
1 in 24,991
Census rank
#2,945
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
12K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 11,960 bearers of the surname Snodgrass in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.00 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2945th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Snodgrass, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Snodgrass
The surname Snodgrass has its origins in England and Scotland, dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "snod," meaning smooth or sleek, and "græs," meaning grass. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a person who lived near an area of well-kept or manicured grass.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Cumberland from 1332, which mentions a John de Snodgras. The name also appears in various forms, such as Snodgrasse and Snodgresse, in records from the 14th and 15th centuries in counties like Yorkshire, Northumberland, and Cumbria.
The Snodgrass surname is associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was William Snodgrass, born around 1440, who was a Scottish clergyman and the first Protestant minister of Ayr after the Reformation. Another prominent figure was Sir John Snodgrass, born in 1620, who was a Scottish soldier and served as the Governor of Blackness Castle.
In the 18th century, James Snodgrass, born in 1763, was a renowned Scottish physician and writer who published works on the theory and practice of medicine. William D. Snodgrass, born in 1926, was an American poet and academic who won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1960 for his collection "Heart's Needle."
Additionally, the name Snodgrass has been linked to several place names in England and Scotland, such as Snodgrass Hill in Northumberland and Snodgrass Farm in Cumbria, further reinforcing its historical ties to these regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Snodgrass
Among Census respondents with the surname Snodgrass, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Snodgrass 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 Snodgrass surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 10,798
- Two or more races3.3% · 394
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 361
- Black or African American2.1% · 246
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 89
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 72
Timeline
Historical Census data for Snodgrass
Snodgrass 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
#2,818
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,806
-157 bearers (-1.2%)
Per 100,000 4.34
Rank movement Down 252 places
2020
#2,945
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,960
-846 bearers (-6.6%)
Per 100,000 4.00
Rank movement Down 127 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,566 | 12,963 | 4.81 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,818 | 12,806 | 4.34 | -157 bearers (-1.2%) | Down 252 places |
| 2020 | #2,945 | 11,960 | 4.00 | -846 bearers (-6.6%) | Down 127 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 Snodgrass 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 | #2,818 | #2,945 | -4.5% |
| Count | 12,806 | 11,960 | -6.6% |
| Per 100K | 4.34 | 4.00 | -7.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Snodgrass bearers went from 12,806 to 11,960 (-6.6% change). The surname moved down 127 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,818 to #2,945.
FAQ
Snodgrass surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Snodgrass?
Name Census estimates that about 13,715 living Americans carry the surname Snodgrass. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 24,991 residents.
How common is Snodgrass?
Snodgrass ranks #2,945 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.00 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 11,960 people with the surname Snodgrass. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (13,715), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.00 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Snodgrass.
Has Snodgrass become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Snodgrass went from 12,806 recorded bearers to 11,960. That is a decrease of 846 (-6.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,818 to #2,945.
What does the Census say about the background of Snodgrass?
Among Census respondents with the surname Snodgrass, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Snodgrass in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (10,798 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Snodgrass appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Snodgrass (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 Snodgrass mean?
An English topographic surname denoting someone who lived near a grassy hill or near the grass-covered village green. 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 Snodgrass (4.00 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 share the surname Snodgrass?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.