2000
#25,908
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 891
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.33
Rare Last name
Toor
A Punjabi surname derived from the Sanskrit word "Tura" meaning a hill or mountain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,081 Americans carry the last name Toor. That puts it at #15,525 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 164,707 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Toor 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 Toor with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.1K
1 in 164,707
Census rank
#15,525
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,815 bearers of the surname Toor in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15525th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Toor, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 82.3%. The next largest groups are White (12.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Toor
The surname TOOR has its origins in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, where it is believed to have first emerged during the medieval era. It is thought to be derived from the Sanskrit word "tura," which means "swift" or "speedy," suggesting that the name may have initially been given to individuals who were known for their physical agility or swiftness.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name TOOR can be found in the Ain-i-Akbari, a 16th-century administrative document commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Akbar. This text mentions a village named "Toor" located in the present-day state of Haryana, which may have served as the origin point for the surname.
In the 17th century, the TOOR name appears in several historical records from the Punjab region, including land ownership documents and tax records. One notable individual from this period was Bhai Toor Singh, a prominent Sikh military leader who fought against the Mughal Empire in the late 1600s.
As the centuries progressed, the TOOR surname continued to be found in various parts of the Punjab, with several notable individuals bearing the name. For example, Bhai Toor Singh Sangatpura (1786-1853) was a renowned Sikh scholar and poet, known for his contributions to Sikh literature and devotional poetry.
Another significant figure was Sardar Toor Singh Kanjla (1846-1910), a influential landowner and politician who played a crucial role in the establishment of the Khalsa College in Amritsar, one of the oldest educational institutions in the region.
In more recent history, Toor has also been a prominent name in the field of sports. Harbhajan Singh Toor (born 1994) is an Indian shot putter who has represented India in international competitions and won several medals, including a gold medal at the 2019 Asian Athletics Championships.
It is worth noting that while the TOOR surname is primarily concentrated in the Punjab region of India and Pakistan, it has also found its way to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora communities. However, the historical roots and earliest documented instances of the name can be traced back to the Indian subcontinent.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Toor
Among Census respondents with the surname Toor, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 82.3%. The next largest groups are White (12.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Toor 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 Toor surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander82.3% · 1,494
- White12.6% · 229
- Two or more races3.0% · 55
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 18
- Black or African American0.8% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Toor
Toor 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
#19,398
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,393
+502 bearers (+56.3%)
Per 100,000 0.47
Rank movement Up 6,510 places
2020
#15,525
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,815
+422 bearers (+30.3%)
Per 100,000 0.61
Rank movement Up 3,873 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #25,908 | 891 | 0.33 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,398 | 1,393 | 0.47 | +502 bearers (+56.3%) | Up 6,510 places |
| 2020 | #15,525 | 1,815 | 0.61 | +422 bearers (+30.3%) | Up 3,873 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 Toor 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 | #19,398 | #15,525 | 20.0% |
| Count | 1,393 | 1,815 | 30.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.47 | 0.61 | 29.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Toor bearers went from 1,393 to 1,815 (+30.3% change). The surname moved up 3,873 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,398 to #15,525.
FAQ
Toor surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Toor?
Name Census estimates that about 2,081 living Americans carry the surname Toor. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 164,707 residents.
How common is Toor?
Toor ranks #15,525 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.61 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 1,815 people with the surname Toor. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,081), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.61 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 Toor.
Has Toor become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Toor went from 1,393 recorded bearers to 1,815. That is an increase of 422 (+30.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #19,398 to #15,525.
What does the Census say about the background of Toor?
Among Census respondents with the surname Toor, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 82.3%. The next largest groups are White (12.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Toor in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.3% (1,494 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Toor appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (82.3%), White (12.6%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Toor (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 Toor mean?
A Punjabi surname derived from the Sanskrit word "Tura" meaning a hill or mountain. 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 Toor (0.61 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 share the surname Toor?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.