Find out how popular the last name Tompson is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Tompson.

Tompson, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Tompson surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tompson in America

Tompson is the 20961st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tompson surname appeared 1,256 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Tompson.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tompson to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Tompson

The surname Tompson is of English origin, derived from the medieval given name "Thomas". It first emerged in the 12th century as a patronymic surname, meaning "son of Thomas". The name Thomas itself comes from the Aramaic name "Toma", meaning "twin".

In the early 13th century, records show the name spelled as "Thomasson" and "Thomassone". Over time, various spelling variations emerged, such as Tomson, Thompsonn, and Tompson. The latter spelling became more common in certain regions of England.

One of the earliest known records of the surname Tompson can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1198, which mention a Robert Tompson. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 also list several individuals with the surname, including John Tompson of Oxfordshire.

In the 14th century, the surname Tompson appeared in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire, where a Simon Tompson was listed as a taxpayer. The Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire from 1379 also include several Tompsons, indicating the name's spread across different parts of England.

Notable individuals with the surname Tompson throughout history include:

1. Sir Samuel Tompson (1587-1649), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Sandwich during the reign of Charles I.

2. Edward Tompson (1665-1701), an English poet and author of the celebrated work "The Sickness", which chronicled his experiences during the Great Plague of London.

3. Benjamin Tompson (1642-1714), known as the "Father of Baptists in America", an English-born clergyman who helped establish several Baptist churches in the American colonies.

4. Mortimer Tompson (1753-1828), a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars, rising to the rank of Vice Admiral.

5. John Tompson (1776-1856), an English landscape painter renowned for his vivid depictions of rural scenes and coastal landscapes.

The surname Tompson has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Thomsonton in Leicestershire and Thompson's Green in Buckinghamshire, which may have influenced the spelling variations over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tompson

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Tompson.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Tompson was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Tompson has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Tompson was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Tompson, please contact us.

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