Find out how popular the last name Syms is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Syms.

Syms, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Syms surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Syms in America

Syms is the 41959th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Syms surname appeared 518 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Syms.

We can also compare 2010 data for Syms to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Syms

The surname "SYMS" originated in England during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old English given name "Simun" or "Sim," which in turn came from the Hebrew name "Shim'on," meaning "he has heard." The addition of the diminutive suffix "-s" or "-es" formed the patronymic surname, indicating that the bearer was the son of someone named Sim.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1195, where a Robert Symes is mentioned. The name also appears in the Feet of Fines for Yorkshire in 1301, with a reference to a William Symes.

The Syms family was particularly concentrated in the counties of Devon and Somerset in southwestern England. In the 16th century, the surname was often spelled as "Simmes" or "Symes," and it was not until the 17th century that the modern spelling of "Syms" became more prevalent.

Notable individuals with the surname Syms include William Syms (c. 1540-1616), a wealthy merchant and benefactor from Devon, who bequeathed funds for the establishment of a grammar school in the town of Tiverton. Another notable figure was Sir Walter Syms (1589-1671), a Member of Parliament for Totnes in Devon during the English Civil War.

In the 18th century, John Syms (1703-1770) was a prominent English architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. George in the East and the Church of St. Mary Woolnoth. Meanwhile, in the United States, Benjamin Syms (1767-1828) was a successful merchant and shipowner from New York City.

During the 19th century, Andrew Syms (1825-1901) was a Scottish businessman and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the development of the city of Aberdeen. He founded the Syms Printing Works, which became one of the largest printing establishments in Scotland.

These are just a few examples of notable individuals with the surname Syms throughout history, highlighting the rich and varied heritage associated with this English surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Syms

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Syms.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Syms was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Syms has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Syms was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Syms, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!