2000
#127,186
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Tobery
A locational surname referring to someone from the town of Tobery or Toubervie in Scotland.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Tobery. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tobery 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.
Bearers in the US
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Tobery in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tobery, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.8%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tobery
The surname Tobery has its origins in the British Isles, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have evolved from the Old English words "tobe" and "ry," which together meant "homestead near the hill."
The earliest known record of the name Tobery appears in the parish registers of St. Mary's Church in Worlington, Suffolk, England, in 1587. This entry lists the baptism of a child named William Tobery, son of John and Alice Tobery.
In the early 17th century, the Tobery name can be found in various court records and land deeds throughout the counties of Suffolk, Norfolk, and Essex. One notable figure was Robert Tobery, a landowner and farmer in the village of Stoke-by-Nayland, Suffolk, who lived from 1612 to 1684.
The Tobery name also appears to have been associated with the village of Tobery, which was located in the county of Bedfordshire. This small hamlet, now abandoned, was first mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Toberye," suggesting a potential connection between the place name and the surname.
As the centuries progressed, the Tobery name spread throughout England and into other parts of the British Isles. In the late 18th century, a prominent figure was Sir James Tobery (1745-1823), a wealthy merchant and landowner in Bristol, England.
Another notable individual was Mary Tobery (1789-1861), an author and poet from County Antrim, Ireland, who published several collections of poetry and verse during her lifetime.
In the 19th century, the Tobery name gained recognition in the field of academia with the work of Professor William Tobery (1821-1892), a renowned historian and scholar at the University of Cambridge.
Lastly, one of the most famous individuals with the surname Tobery was Sir Henry Tobery (1878-1957), a highly decorated British military officer who served with distinction in both World Wars and was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions during the Battle of the Somme in 1916.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tobery
Among Census respondents with the surname Tobery, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.8%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Tobery 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 Tobery surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.4% · 102
- Two or more races6.8% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tobery
Tobery 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
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-6 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,954 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,371 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,186 | 124 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | -6 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 13,954 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 2,371 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 Tobery 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 | #141,140 | #143,511 | -1.7% |
| Count | 118 | 118 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tobery bearers went from 118 to 118 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 2,371 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #143,511.
FAQ
Tobery surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tobery?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Tobery. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Tobery?
Tobery ranks #143,511 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 118 people with the surname Tobery. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Tobery.
Has Tobery become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tobery went from 118 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Tobery?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tobery, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.8%) and Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Tobery in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.4% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tobery appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.4%), Two or More Races (6.8%), Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Tobery (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 Tobery mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from the town of Tobery or Toubervie in Scotland. 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 Tobery (0.04 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 Tobery?
See how many people have the surname Tobery on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.