2000
#3,323
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,873
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.66
Uncommon Last name
Tice
A surname of English origin, derived from a nickname for a clever or mischievous person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,199 Americans carry the last name Tice. That puts it at #3,561 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.27 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 30,606 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tice 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 Tice with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 30,606
Census rank
#3,561
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.8K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,766 bearers of the surname Tice in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.27 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3561st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tice, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tice
The surname Tice has its origins in England, with the earliest known records dating back to the 13th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Old English word "tice," which means "a small brook or stream." This suggests that the name may have been originally given to someone who lived near a small brook or stream.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where it is spelled as "Tysse." This record lists a person named Roger Tysse, who was living in Oxfordshire at the time. The name also appears in various other medieval records, such as the Subsidy Rolls of 1327, where it is spelled as "Tyse."
In the late 16th century, the name began to be spelled more consistently as "Tice." This spelling can be found in several parish records from the time, including those from the county of Sussex. One notable example is Thomas Tice, who was born in 1589 in the village of Westmeston, Sussex.
The name Tice may also be associated with certain place names, such as the village of Ticewell in Nottinghamshire. This village was originally recorded as "Ticewelle" in the Domesday Book of 1086, suggesting a possible connection between the surname and this location.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the surname Tice:
1. John Tice (c. 1670-1742) was an English merchant and shipowner who played a significant role in the development of the Virginia tobacco trade in the early 18th century.
2. William Tice (1807-1891) was an American businessman and politician from Pennsylvania. He served as a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate from 1852 to 1856.
3. Edward Tice (1826-1899) was a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Grosvenor Hotel and the Royal School of Mines.
4. Frances Tice (1850-1928) was an American author and educator known for her work in promoting women's education and suffrage in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
5. Henry Tice (1898-1972) was an American artist and illustrator best known for his paintings of rural scenes and landscapes in the American Southwest.
While the surname Tice may have evolved over time, its roots can be traced back to the early medieval period in England, where it was likely associated with geographic features or specific locations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tice
Among Census respondents with the surname Tice, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Tice 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 Tice surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.8% · 8,676
- Two or more races4.0% · 386
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 345
- Black or African American2.5% · 243
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 75
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 41
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tice
Tice 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
#3,529
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,118
+245 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 3.43
Rank movement Down 206 places
2020
#3,561
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,766
-352 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 3.27
Rank movement Down 32 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,323 | 9,873 | 3.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,529 | 10,118 | 3.43 | +245 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 206 places |
| 2020 | #3,561 | 9,766 | 3.27 | -352 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 32 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 Tice 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 | #3,529 | #3,561 | -0.9% |
| Count | 10,118 | 9,766 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 3.43 | 3.27 | -4.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tice bearers went from 10,118 to 9,766 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 32 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,529 to #3,561.
FAQ
Tice surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tice?
Name Census estimates that about 11,199 living Americans carry the surname Tice. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 30,606 residents.
How common is Tice?
Tice ranks #3,561 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.27 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,766 people with the surname Tice. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,199), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.27 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.27 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Tice.
Has Tice become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tice went from 10,118 recorded bearers to 9,766. That is a decrease of 352 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,529 to #3,561.
What does the Census say about the background of Tice?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tice, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Tice in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.8% (8,676 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tice appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.8%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Tice (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 Tice mean?
A surname of English origin, derived from a nickname for a clever or mischievous person. 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 Tice (3.27 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 Tice?
Want to know how many people have the surname Tice? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.