2000
#4,486
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,278
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.70
Rare Last name
Towns
An English locational surname referring to someone who lived near a village, hamlet, or enclosure.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,677 Americans carry the last name Towns. That puts it at #4,550 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.53 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 39,501 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Towns 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 Towns with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.7K
1 in 39,501
Census rank
#4,550
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,567 bearers of the surname Towns in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.53 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4550th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Towns, the largest self-reported group is Black at 52.4%. The next largest groups are White (38.4%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Towns
The surname TOWNS is of English origin, deriving from the Old English word "tun" meaning an enclosed area or a village. It likely emerged during the medieval period in England, with some of the earliest known recorded instances dating back to the late 12th century. The name initially referred to people who hailed from a specific town or village, often used as a descriptive term to distinguish individuals of the same given name.
TOWNS is a locational surname, and many early bearers of this name can be traced back to various towns and villages across England, such as Townson from Townsend in Derbyshire, Townrow from Townroe in Lancashire, and Townley from the township of Townley in Yorkshire. The name's spelling has varied over time, with alternative forms like Towne, Toun, and Toun appearing in historical records.
One notable historical reference to the name TOWNS can be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which recorded landowners and their properties across England. The Hundred Rolls mention individuals with the surname, such as William de la Toune and John atte Toune, further solidifying the name's early roots in medieval England.
Among the earliest recorded individuals bearing the surname TOWNS is John Towne, a merchant from London who lived in the late 14th century. Another early bearer of the name was William Towne, a landowner from Suffolk, who was mentioned in a deed dated 1428.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have carried the surname TOWNS. One such person was Robert Towne (c. 1542-1621), an English politician and Member of Parliament who served during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Another was Thomas Towne (1608-1692), one of the early settlers of Salem, Massachusetts, who arrived in the New World aboard the ship Hopewell in 1635.
In the realm of literature, one cannot overlook Nathaniel Towne (1808-1857), an American writer and poet who penned works such as "The Emigrant's Farewell" and "The Backwoodsman." A more recent figure with the surname TOWNS was Charles Towne (1858-1924), an American architect renowned for his work on the campus of Yale University and other notable structures in New England.
Additionally, the name TOWNS has been associated with various place names and locations throughout England, such as Townend in Yorkshire, Townhill in Hampshire, and Towngate in Lancashire, further reinforcing its geographical origins and connections.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Towns
Among Census respondents with the surname Towns, the largest self-reported group is Black at 52.4%. The next largest groups are White (38.4%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Towns 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 Towns surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American52.4% · 3,966
- White38.4% · 2,904
- Two or more races4.7% · 352
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 294
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 33
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Towns
Towns 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
#4,569
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,760
+482 bearers (+6.6%)
Per 100,000 2.63
Rank movement Down 83 places
2020
#4,550
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,567
-193 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 2.53
Rank movement Up 19 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,486 | 7,278 | 2.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,569 | 7,760 | 2.63 | +482 bearers (+6.6%) | Down 83 places |
| 2020 | #4,550 | 7,567 | 2.53 | -193 bearers (-2.5%) | Up 19 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 Towns 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 | #4,569 | #4,550 | 0.4% |
| Count | 7,760 | 7,567 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.63 | 2.53 | -3.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Towns bearers went from 7,760 to 7,567 (-2.5% change). The surname moved up 19 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,569 to #4,550.
FAQ
Towns surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Towns?
Name Census estimates that about 8,677 living Americans carry the surname Towns. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 39,501 residents.
How common is Towns?
Towns ranks #4,550 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.53 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,567 people with the surname Towns. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,677), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.53 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.53 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Towns.
Has Towns become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Towns went from 7,760 recorded bearers to 7,567. That is a decrease of 193 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #4,569 to #4,550.
What does the Census say about the background of Towns?
Among Census respondents with the surname Towns, the largest self-reported group is Black at 52.4%. The next largest groups are White (38.4%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Towns in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.4% (3,966 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Towns appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (52.4%), White (38.4%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Towns (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 Towns mean?
An English locational surname referring to someone who lived near a village, hamlet, or enclosure. 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 Towns (2.53 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 have the last name Towns?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Towns at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.