2000
#10,128
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,928
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.09
Rare Last name
Thome
Derived from a medieval English place name meaning "a place of thorn bushes" or from the Old Norse personal name "Tumi."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,428 Americans carry the last name Thome. That puts it at #10,256 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.00 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 99,987 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Thome 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 Thome with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.4K
1 in 99,987
Census rank
#10,256
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,989 bearers of the surname Thome in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.00 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10256th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Thome, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.0%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Thome
The surname Thome has its origins in medieval England, traced back to the 12th century. The name is derived from the medieval English personal name "Thomas," which itself comes from the Aramaic name "Toma," meaning "twin." The earliest recorded spelling of the surname is found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1190, where it appears as "Thomas Thome."
Thome is a variant spelling of the more common surname "Thomas," reflecting regional pronunciation and dialect variations. In some areas, the "th" sound was pronounced as a "t," giving rise to the "Thome" spelling. This was particularly prevalent in parts of southern England, such as Dorset and Somerset.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Thome is William Thome, a prominent merchant and landowner from Bristol in the late 13th century. Records indicate that he owned substantial properties in the city and surrounding areas, reflecting the family's established status.
In the 14th century, the surname Thome appears in various historical records, including the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, where a "Matilda Thome" is mentioned. The Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1327 also reference a "John Thome," suggesting the name's presence in different regions of England.
The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landholdings compiled in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the surname Thome. However, it does record several individuals with the personal name "Thomas," which likely contributed to the eventual formation of the surname.
One notable figure bearing the surname Thome was John Thome, a 15th-century English clergyman and scholar. Born around 1420 in Somerset, he became a renowned theologian and was appointed the Chancellor of the University of Oxford in 1478.
Another prominent individual was Sir Robert Thome, a 16th-century English merchant and explorer. Born in Bristol around 1490, he was involved in early English attempts to find a northern passage to Asia and is credited with proposing the idea of sailing across the North Atlantic to reach the Orient.
In the 17th century, the surname Thome appears in various parish records and historical documents. For instance, the baptismal records of St. Mary's Church in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, mention a "William Thome" in 1612.
The 18th century saw the surname Thome further spread across England, with records indicating individuals bearing the name in counties such as Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, and Hampshire. One notable figure from this period was Richard Thome, a prominent lawyer and judge born in Wiltshire in 1728.
By the 19th century, the surname Thome had established itself as a recognizable English surname, with families bearing the name found across various parts of the country. One notable individual from this era was William Thome, a British artist and illustrator born in London in 1843, known for his detailed engravings and woodcuts.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Thome
Among Census respondents with the surname Thome, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.0%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Thome 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 Thome surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.4% · 2,643
- Hispanic or Latino7.0% · 209
- Two or more races2.5% · 74
- Black or African American1.3% · 38
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Thome
Thome 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
#10,189
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,163
+235 bearers (+8.0%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 61 places
2020
#10,256
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,989
-174 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 1.00
Rank movement Down 67 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,128 | 2,928 | 1.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,189 | 3,163 | 1.07 | +235 bearers (+8.0%) | Down 61 places |
| 2020 | #10,256 | 2,989 | 1.00 | -174 bearers (-5.5%) | 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 Thome 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 | #10,189 | #10,256 | -0.7% |
| Count | 3,163 | 2,989 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.07 | 1.00 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Thome bearers went from 3,163 to 2,989 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 67 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,189 to #10,256.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Thome
FAQ
Thome surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Thome?
Name Census estimates that about 3,428 living Americans carry the surname Thome. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 99,987 residents.
How common is Thome?
Thome ranks #10,256 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.00 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,989 people with the surname Thome. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,428), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.00 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Thome.
Has Thome become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Thome went from 3,163 recorded bearers to 2,989. That is a decrease of 174 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,189 to #10,256.
What does the Census say about the background of Thome?
Among Census respondents with the surname Thome, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.0%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Thome in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.4% (2,643 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Thome appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.4%), Hispanic (7.0%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Thome (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 Thome mean?
Derived from a medieval English place name meaning "a place of thorn bushes" or from the Old Norse personal name "Tumi." 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 Thome (1.00 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 Thome?
Find out how many people have the surname Thome on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.