2000
#2,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,578
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.03
Uncommon Last name
Tharp
An English occupational surname referring to someone who played the harp or worked as a harpist.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 15,019 Americans carry the last name Tharp. That puts it at #2,684 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 22,821 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tharp 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 Tharp with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
15K
1 in 22,821
Census rank
#2,684
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
13K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 13,097 bearers of the surname Tharp in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2684th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tharp, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tharp
The surname Tharp is of English origin and is believed to have derived from the Old English word "þorp," which means a small village or hamlet. The name is thought to have originated in the 8th or 9th century, during the Anglo-Saxon period in England.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Torp" and "Thorp." This suggests that the name was already established in various parts of England by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066.
The name Tharp was particularly prevalent in the northern counties of England, such as Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Northumberland. It is believed that many families with this surname can trace their origins back to these regions.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms, including "Thorp," "Thorpe," and "Therp." These variations likely emerged due to regional dialects and differences in pronunciation and spelling conventions of the time.
One notable bearer of the Tharp surname was John Tharp, a 16th-century English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Taunton in 1563. Another prominent figure was Sir William Tharp, who lived in the 17th century and was knighted for his service to the Crown.
In the United States, the Tharp surname gained prominence through individuals like Twyla Tharp, a renowned American dancer, choreographer, and author born in 1941. Van K. Tharp, born in 1945, is another well-known American figure, recognized for his contributions to the field of investment and trading psychology.
Other individuals with the Tharp surname who have left their mark on history include Samuel Tharp (1734-1791), an American revolutionary soldier, and James Tharp (1857-1941), a U.S. Congressman from Missouri.
The name Tharp has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Thorpe, a village in Derbyshire, and Thorpe-on-the-Hill, a village in Lincolnshire, further reinforcing its historical roots in the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tharp
Among Census respondents with the surname Tharp, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Tharp 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 Tharp surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 11,743
- Two or more races3.9% · 515
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 385
- Black or African American2.3% · 299
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 86
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 69
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tharp
Tharp 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
#2,619
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,757
+179 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 4.66
Rank movement Down 176 places
2020
#2,684
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,097
-660 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 4.38
Rank movement Down 65 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,443 | 13,578 | 5.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,619 | 13,757 | 4.66 | +179 bearers (+1.3%) | Down 176 places |
| 2020 | #2,684 | 13,097 | 4.38 | -660 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 65 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 Tharp 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 | #2,619 | #2,684 | -2.5% |
| Count | 13,757 | 13,097 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 4.66 | 4.38 | -6.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tharp bearers went from 13,757 to 13,097 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 65 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,619 to #2,684.
FAQ
Tharp surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tharp?
Name Census estimates that about 15,019 living Americans carry the surname Tharp. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 22,821 residents.
How common is Tharp?
Tharp ranks #2,684 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.38 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 13,097 people with the surname Tharp. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (15,019), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.38 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 Tharp.
Has Tharp become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tharp went from 13,757 recorded bearers to 13,097. That is a decrease of 660 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,619 to #2,684.
What does the Census say about the background of Tharp?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tharp, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Tharp in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (11,743 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tharp appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Two or More Races (3.9%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Tharp (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 Tharp mean?
An English occupational surname referring to someone who played the harp or worked as a harpist. 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 Tharp (4.38 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 have the last name Tharp?
See how many people have the surname Tharp on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.