2000
#10,951
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,666
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.99
Rare Last name
Toman
Derived from a Czech nickname meaning "a thousand men," likely referring to a tribal or military leader.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,812 Americans carry the last name Toman. That puts it at #12,133 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.82 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 121,890 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Toman 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 Toman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.8K
1 in 121,890
Census rank
#12,133
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,452 bearers of the surname Toman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.82 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12133rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Toman, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Toman
The surname Toman has its origins in the Czech Republic, where it first emerged in the late medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the old Czech word "toman," which referred to a type of coin or monetary unit that was in circulation during the 15th and 16th centuries. This suggests that the name may have originally been an occupational surname for someone involved in minting or handling money.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Toman surname can be found in the Berní Rula, a tax register compiled in Bohemia in the late 17th century. In this document, there are several entries for individuals with the surname Toman, indicating that the name was already well-established in the region by that time.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Toman surname began to spread beyond the Czech lands as people migrated to other parts of Europe and overseas. Notable individuals bearing this name include Jan Toman (1880-1947), a Czech politician and journalist who served as the first Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia after World War I.
Another prominent figure was Vladimír Toman (1896-1942), a Czech writer and poet who was active in the early 20th century avant-garde literary movement. His works, such as the poetry collection "Měsíc nad řekou" (Moon over the River), explored themes of nature and the human experience.
In the realm of science, Jaroslav Toman (1895-1976) was a Czech chemist and inventor who made significant contributions to the study of organic compounds and the development of synthetic materials.
Across the Atlantic, the Toman surname can also be found among Czech immigrant communities in the United States and Canada. One notable example is Frank Toman (1908-1981), an American politician of Czech descent who served as the Mayor of Chicago from 1965 to 1976.
While the Toman surname may have originated as an occupational name related to coinage, it has since become a widely recognized Czech surname with a rich history spanning centuries and continents.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Toman
Among Census respondents with the surname Toman, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Toman 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 Toman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.9% · 2,205
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 106
- Two or more races3.2% · 78
- Black or African American1.1% · 26
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Toman
Toman 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
#11,104
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,857
+191 bearers (+7.2%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Down 153 places
2020
#12,133
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,452
-405 bearers (-14.2%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 1,029 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,951 | 2,666 | 0.99 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,104 | 2,857 | 0.97 | +191 bearers (+7.2%) | Down 153 places |
| 2020 | #12,133 | 2,452 | 0.82 | -405 bearers (-14.2%) | Down 1,029 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 Toman 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 | #11,104 | #12,133 | -9.3% |
| Count | 2,857 | 2,452 | -14.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.97 | 0.82 | -15.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Toman bearers went from 2,857 to 2,452 (-14.2% change). The surname moved down 1,029 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,104 to #12,133.
FAQ
Toman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Toman?
Name Census estimates that about 2,812 living Americans carry the surname Toman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 121,890 residents.
How common is Toman?
Toman ranks #12,133 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.82 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 2,452 people with the surname Toman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,812), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.82 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.82 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 Toman.
Has Toman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Toman went from 2,857 recorded bearers to 2,452. That is a decrease of 405 (-14.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,104 to #12,133.
What does the Census say about the background of Toman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Toman, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Toman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.9% (2,205 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Toman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.9%), Hispanic (4.3%), Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Toman (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 Toman mean?
Derived from a Czech nickname meaning "a thousand men," likely referring to a tribal or military leader. 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 Toman (0.82 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 Toman?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Toman on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.