2000
#143,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Tour
A French surname derived from the word "tour," meaning a turn or journey.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Tour. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tour 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Tour in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tour, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.3%. The next largest groups are Black (23.5%) and Hispanic (11.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tour
The surname Tour originated in France during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French word "tour," meaning a tower or fortified structure. The name likely originated from someone who lived near a prominent tower or worked as a watchman or guard in a tower.
The first recorded instances of the name Tour can be found in historical records from the 12th century in the regions of Normandy and Brittany in northern France. The name was often spelled variations like Toure, Tourre, or de la Tour.
One of the earliest documented individuals with this surname was Guillaume de la Tour, a Norman knight who fought in the Third Crusade under King Richard I of England in the late 12th century. Another notable figure was Bertrand de la Tour, a French military leader who participated in the Hundred Years' War in the 14th century.
The surname Tour is also associated with several noble families from different regions of France. The de la Tour d'Auvergne family was a prominent noble house from the Auvergne region, with members like Godefroi de la Tour d'Auvergne (1305-1355), a renowned military leader during the Hundred Years' War.
The de la Tour du Pin family was a noble family from the Dauphiné region, and included Frédéric-Séraphin de La Tour du Pin (1759-1837), a French soldier and politician who served as Minister of War during the early stages of the French Revolution.
Another notable figure was Maurice Quentin de La Tour (1704-1788), a renowned French Rococo pastel artist who became one of the most celebrated portraitists of his time.
The surname Tour is also found in various place names across France, such as La Tour-d'Aigues in Provence and La Tour-de-Peilz in Switzerland, reflecting the geographical origins and associations of the name with fortified structures or settlements.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tour
Among Census respondents with the surname Tour, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.3%. The next largest groups are Black (23.5%) and Hispanic (11.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Tour 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 Tour surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White51.3% · 61
- Black or African American23.5% · 28
- Hispanic or Latino11.8% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander8.4% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.5% · 3
- Two or more races2.5% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tour
Tour 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
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
+21 bearers (+19.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,799 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-8 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,740 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #143,847 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | +21 bearers (+19.8%) | Up 10,799 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 9,740 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 Tour 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 | #133,048 | #142,788 | -7.3% |
| Count | 127 | 119 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tour bearers went from 127 to 119 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 9,740 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #142,788.
FAQ
Tour surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tour?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Tour. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Tour?
Tour ranks #142,788 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 119 people with the surname Tour. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), 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 Tour.
Has Tour become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tour went from 127 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 8 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Tour?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tour, the largest self-reported group is White at 51.3%. The next largest groups are Black (23.5%) and Hispanic (11.8%). 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 Tour in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.3% (61 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tour appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (51.3%), Black (23.5%), Hispanic (11.8%). 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 Tour (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 Tour mean?
A French surname derived from the word "tour," meaning a turn or journey. 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 Tour (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 many people share the surname Tour?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.