2000
#14
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 710,696
First available Census row
Per 100,000 263.45
Very Common Last name
Thomas
An English and Welsh patronymic surname meaning "son of Thomas," derived from the Aramaic personal name meaning "twin."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 842,092 Americans carry the last name Thomas. That puts it at #16 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 245.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 407 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Thomas 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 Thomas with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
842K
1 in 407
Census rank
#16
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
245.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
734K
very common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 734,345 bearers of the surname Thomas in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 245.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 16th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Thomas, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.7%. The next largest groups are Black (37.8%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Thomas
The surname THOMAS originated in England and traces its roots back to the 12th century. It is derived from the given name Thomas, which comes from the Aramaic name 'Toma' meaning 'twin'. The name was popularized in Europe after one of the twelve apostles of Christ bore the name.
THOMAS is believed to have emerged as a surname during the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. As it became customary to adopt hereditary surnames, many individuals derived their last names from their given names or those of their ancestors. This surname is thought to have originated from the personal name of the father or an early ancestor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname THOMAS can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which recorded landowners in England after the Norman Conquest. The name appears in various spellings, such as Thomas, Tomas, and Tommes, reflecting the regional pronunciation variations at the time.
In the 13th century, the surname THOMAS appeared in several historical records, including the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire, where a Ralph Thomas was mentioned in 1230. Another early record is from the Hundredorum Rolls of Oxfordshire, which listed a Richard Thomas in 1273.
Notable individuals with the surname THOMAS include:
1. Sir Rice ap Thomas (c. 1449-1531), a Welsh soldier and courtier who served under King Henry VII.
2. John Thomas (1805-1871), an American lawyer and politician who served as the 16th Governor of Maryland.
3. Theodore Thomas (1835-1905), an American violinist and conductor who founded the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
4. Dylan Thomas (1914-1953), a renowned Welsh poet and writer, best known for his work "Under Milk Wood".
5. Clarence Thomas (born 1948), an American lawyer and jurist who has served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States since 1991.
The surname THOMAS has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Thomastown in Gloucestershire and Thomastown in Yorkshire, which may have influenced the development of the surname in certain regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Thomas
Among Census respondents with the surname Thomas, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.7%. The next largest groups are Black (37.8%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Thomas 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 Thomas surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White49.7% · 365,101
- Black or African American37.8% · 277,281
- Two or more races4.8% · 34,975
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 26,220
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.2% · 23,380
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 7,388
Timeline
Historical Census data for Thomas
Thomas 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
#16
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 756,142
+45,446 bearers (+6.4%)
Per 100,000 256.34
Rank movement Down 2 places
2020
#16
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 734,345
-21,797 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 245.68
Rank movement No rank change
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14 | 710,696 | 263.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #16 | 756,142 | 256.34 | +45,446 bearers (+6.4%) | Down 2 places |
| 2020 | #16 | 734,345 | 245.68 | -21,797 bearers (-2.9%) | No rank change |
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 Thomas 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 | #16 | #16 | 0.0% |
| Count | 756,142 | 734,345 | -2.9% |
| Per 100K | 256.34 | 245.68 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Thomas bearers went from 756,142 to 734,345 (-2.9% change). The surname held its position in the national ranking, remaining at #16.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Thomas
FAQ
Thomas surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Thomas?
Name Census estimates that about 842,092 living Americans carry the surname Thomas. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 407 residents.
How common is Thomas?
Thomas ranks #16 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 245.68 per 100,000 residents, which is about 246 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 734,345 people with the surname Thomas. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (842,092), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 245.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 245.68 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 246 of them to have the surname Thomas.
Has Thomas become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Thomas went from 756,142 recorded bearers to 734,345. That is a decrease of 21,797 (-2.9%). In the national ranking it stayed at #16.
What does the Census say about the background of Thomas?
Among Census respondents with the surname Thomas, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.7%. The next largest groups are Black (37.8%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Thomas in the 2020 Census, accounting for 49.7% (365,101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Thomas appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (49.7%), Black (37.8%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Thomas (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 Thomas mean?
An English and Welsh patronymic surname meaning "son of Thomas," derived from the Aramaic personal name meaning "twin." 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 Thomas (245.68 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 surname Thomas?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.