2000
#67,936
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 271
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.10
Very Rare Last name
Stom
A toponymic surname possibly derived from a place name with an element related to stump or stump of a tree.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 281 Americans carry the last name Stom. That puts it at #82,881 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,219,766 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stom 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
281
1 in 1,219,766
Census rank
#82,881
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
245
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 245 bearers of the surname Stom in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 82881st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stom, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.7%) and Hispanic (1.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stom
The surname STOM is believed to have originated in Germany and the Netherlands during the Middle Ages. It was likely derived from the Old German word "stom," which meant "mute" or "unable to speak." This suggests that the name may have been given as a descriptive nickname to someone who was either mute or unusually quiet.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name STOM can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from Bremen, Germany, dating back to the 13th century. In these records, a person named Hinricus Stom is mentioned in 1284.
Another early reference to the name can be found in the Oorkondenboek van Holland en Zeeland, a collection of charters and documents from the Dutch provinces of Holland and Zeeland. In this collection, a person named Willelmus Stom is mentioned in a document dated 1298.
In the 14th century, a notable figure with the surname STOM was Johannes Stom, a Dutch painter who lived from around 1335 to 1399. His works can still be found in several Dutch museums and churches, including the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
During the 16th century, there was a German composer named Christoph Stom, who lived from around 1525 to 1592. He is known for his contributions to the development of Protestant church music during the Reformation.
Another notable person with the surname STOM was Pieter Stom, a Dutch artist who lived from 1615 to 1662. He was known for his still-life paintings and genre scenes depicting everyday life in the Netherlands.
The name STOM can also be found in various place names and older spellings of place names. For example, there is a village in the Netherlands called Stommeer, which likely derived its name from the surname STOM.
Over the centuries, the surname STOM has undergone various spelling variations, such as Stohm, Stohme, and Stohmer, reflecting the regional dialects and linguistic influences of different areas where the name was used.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stom
Among Census respondents with the surname Stom, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.7%) and Hispanic (1.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Stom 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 Stom surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 226
- Two or more races5.7% · 14
- Hispanic or Latino1.2% · 3
- Black or African American0.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stom
Stom 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
#78,316
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 244
-27 bearers (-10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 10,380 places
2020
#82,881
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 245
+1 bearers (+0.4%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 4,565 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #67,936 | 271 | 0.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #78,316 | 244 | 0.08 | -27 bearers (-10.0%) | Down 10,380 places |
| 2020 | #82,881 | 245 | 0.08 | +1 bearers (+0.4%) | Down 4,565 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 Stom 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 | #78,316 | #82,881 | -5.8% |
| Count | 244 | 245 | 0.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.08 | 0.08 | 2.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stom bearers went from 244 to 245 (+0.4% change). The surname moved down 4,565 positions in the national ranking, going from #78,316 to #82,881.
FAQ
Stom surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stom?
Name Census estimates that about 281 living Americans carry the surname Stom. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,219,766 residents.
How common is Stom?
Stom ranks #82,881 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.08 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 245 people with the surname Stom. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (281), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.08 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Stom.
Has Stom become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stom went from 244 recorded bearers to 245. That is an increase of 1 (+0.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #78,316 to #82,881.
What does the Census say about the background of Stom?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stom, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.7%) and Hispanic (1.2%). 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 Stom in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (226 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stom appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Two or More Races (5.7%), Hispanic (1.2%). 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 Stom (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 Stom mean?
A toponymic surname possibly derived from a place name with an element related to stump or stump of a tree. 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 Stom (0.08 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 Stom?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the last name Stom on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.