2000
#4,392
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,467
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.77
Rare Last name
Taber
An English occupational surname for a player of the tabor, a small drum used to accompany a pipe or fife.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,108 Americans carry the last name Taber. That puts it at #4,842 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 42,274 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Taber 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 Taber with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.1K
1 in 42,274
Census rank
#4,842
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,071 bearers of the surname Taber in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4842nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Taber, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Taber
The surname Taber is of English origin and dates back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word 'tabor', which referred to a small portable drum. This suggests that the name may have been initially given to a drummer or someone who played the tabor.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Taber can be found in various medieval documents, such as the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where it appears as 'le Tabur'. In the Subsidy Rolls of Suffolk from 1327, the name is listed as 'Thabor'. These variations in spelling were common during that time period.
One notable historical reference to the Taber name is in the renowned Domesday Book, which was commissioned in 1086 by William the Conqueror. The book mentions a place called 'Taber' in Gloucestershire, which may have been named after someone with the surname or possibly derived from the same root word.
In the 14th century, there is a record of a man named John Taber, who was a merchant in Bristol. His sons, William and Richard Taber, were prominent figures in the city during the late 1300s. Another early bearer of the name was Sir Robert Taber, a knight who fought alongside King Edward III in the Battle of Crécy in 1346.
During the 16th century, the Taber family established themselves in the county of Hertfordshire, where they owned land and property. One notable member was Thomas Taber, who was born in 1555 and served as a magistrate in the town of St Albans.
In the 17th century, a family branch of the Tabers migrated to colonial America, with Philip Taber being among the first settlers in New England. He arrived in Massachusetts in 1635 and later played a role in the founding of the town of Yarmouth on Cape Cod.
Over the centuries, several other individuals with the Taber surname have left their mark in various fields. These include John Taber (1615-1675), an early settler of Rhode Island; Benjamin Taber (1673-1715), a Quaker minister and abolitionist; and Henry Taber (1858-1936), an American businessman and co-founder of the Taber Prang Art Company.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Taber
Among Census respondents with the surname Taber, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Taber 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 Taber surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.1% · 6,301
- Two or more races4.5% · 321
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 259
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 69
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 61
- Black or African American0.8% · 60
Timeline
Historical Census data for Taber
Taber 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
#4,550
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,788
+321 bearers (+4.3%)
Per 100,000 2.64
Rank movement Down 158 places
2020
#4,842
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,071
-717 bearers (-9.2%)
Per 100,000 2.37
Rank movement Down 292 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,392 | 7,467 | 2.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,550 | 7,788 | 2.64 | +321 bearers (+4.3%) | Down 158 places |
| 2020 | #4,842 | 7,071 | 2.37 | -717 bearers (-9.2%) | Down 292 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 Taber 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 | #4,550 | #4,842 | -6.4% |
| Count | 7,788 | 7,071 | -9.2% |
| Per 100K | 2.64 | 2.37 | -10.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Taber bearers went from 7,788 to 7,071 (-9.2% change). The surname moved down 292 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,550 to #4,842.
FAQ
Taber surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Taber?
Name Census estimates that about 8,108 living Americans carry the surname Taber. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 42,274 residents.
How common is Taber?
Taber ranks #4,842 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.37 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 7,071 people with the surname Taber. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,108), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.37 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 Taber.
Has Taber become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Taber went from 7,788 recorded bearers to 7,071. That is a decrease of 717 (-9.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,550 to #4,842.
What does the Census say about the background of Taber?
Among Census respondents with the surname Taber, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Taber in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.1% (6,301 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Taber appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.1%), Two or More Races (4.5%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Taber (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 Taber mean?
An English occupational surname for a player of the tabor, a small drum used to accompany a pipe or fife. 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 Taber (2.37 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 many people share the surname Taber?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.