2000
#1,722
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,068
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.07
Uncommon Last name
Stubbs
A nickname-derived surname referring to a person with a short or stubby appearance, particularly their legs or feet.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 21,845 Americans carry the last name Stubbs. That puts it at #1,848 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 15,690 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stubbs 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 Stubbs with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
22K
1 in 15,690
Census rank
#1,848
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
19K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 19,050 bearers of the surname Stubbs in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1848th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stubbs, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.9%. The next largest groups are Black (28.8%) and Hispanic (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stubbs
The surname Stubbs is of English origin and dates back to the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English word "stubb" which means a tree stump or the remaining part of a felled tree. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a prominent tree stump or wooded area.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are records of places called "Estubbes" and "Westubbes" in various parts of England, suggesting the name was derived from a place name. The earliest recorded spelling of the surname is found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1199, where one Robert Stubbe is mentioned.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir John Stubbs, a 16th-century English writer and pamphleteer who was born in 1543 and died in 1591. He is known for his work "The Discovery of a Gaping Gulf" which criticized the proposed marriage of Queen Elizabeth I to the Duke of Anjou.
Another notable person with this surname was George Stubbs, the famous 18th-century English painter who specialized in animal paintings. He was born in 1724 and died in 1806. His paintings of horses and other animals were highly regarded for their anatomical accuracy and attention to detail.
In the 19th century, William Stubbs, an English historian and bishop, was a prominent figure. Born in 1825, he is best known for his work "Constitutional History of England" which was a seminal study of the development of English law and government.
The name Stubbs has also been associated with places like Stubbs Green in Oxfordshire, Stubbs Walden in Essex, and Stubbs Lane in various parts of England. These place names likely originated from the surname itself or from the Old English word "stubb" referring to a wooded area or clearing.
Other notable individuals with the surname Stubbs include Walter Stubbs, an English cricketer who played for Gloucestershire in the late 19th century, and Harry Stubbs, a British soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross during World War I.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stubbs
Among Census respondents with the surname Stubbs, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.9%. The next largest groups are Black (28.8%) and Hispanic (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Stubbs 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 Stubbs surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White61.9% · 11,788
- Black or African American28.8% · 5,478
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 790
- Two or more races4.1% · 786
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 112
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 96
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stubbs
Stubbs 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
#1,781
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,134
+1,066 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 6.83
Rank movement Down 59 places
2020
#1,848
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,050
-1,084 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 6.37
Rank movement Down 67 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,722 | 19,068 | 7.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,781 | 20,134 | 6.83 | +1,066 bearers (+5.6%) | Down 59 places |
| 2020 | #1,848 | 19,050 | 6.37 | -1,084 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 67 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 Stubbs 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 | #1,781 | #1,848 | -3.8% |
| Count | 20,134 | 19,050 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 6.83 | 6.37 | -6.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stubbs bearers went from 20,134 to 19,050 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 67 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,781 to #1,848.
FAQ
Stubbs surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stubbs?
Name Census estimates that about 21,845 living Americans carry the surname Stubbs. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 15,690 residents.
How common is Stubbs?
Stubbs ranks #1,848 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.37 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 19,050 people with the surname Stubbs. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (21,845), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.37 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Stubbs.
Has Stubbs become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stubbs went from 20,134 recorded bearers to 19,050. That is a decrease of 1,084 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,781 to #1,848.
What does the Census say about the background of Stubbs?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stubbs, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.9%. The next largest groups are Black (28.8%) and Hispanic (4.1%). 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 Stubbs in the 2020 Census, accounting for 61.9% (11,788 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stubbs appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (61.9%), Black (28.8%), Hispanic (4.1%). 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 Stubbs (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 Stubbs mean?
A nickname-derived surname referring to a person with a short or stubby appearance, particularly their legs or feet. 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 Stubbs (6.37 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 Stubbs?
If you just want to know how many people are called Stubbs, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.