2000
#15,167
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,784
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.66
Rare Last name
Trimm
An English occupational surname for a carpenter or builder specializing in interior woodwork.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,071 Americans carry the last name Trimm. That puts it at #15,581 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.60 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 165,502 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Trimm 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 Trimm with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.1K
1 in 165,502
Census rank
#15,581
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,806 bearers of the surname Trimm in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.60 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15581st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Trimm, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.5%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Trimm
The surname Trimm has its origins in England, where it first emerged in the 13th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Old English word "trymman," which means "to trim" or "to decorate." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname may have been involved in occupations related to trimming or decorating, such as tailoring, embroidery, or woodworking.
One of the earliest known records of the name Trimm can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, where it is listed as "Trymme." This document was a survey of landholders in England, indicating that the Trimm family had already established themselves as landowners by that time.
The surname Trimm also appeared in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, where it was recorded as "Trym." These rolls were tax records, providing further evidence of the Trimm family's presence in the English Midlands during the 14th century.
By the 16th century, the surname had evolved into its modern spelling of "Trimm." This can be seen in the Parish Registers of St. Mary's Church in Warwick, where a Thomas Trimm was recorded as being baptized in 1578.
One notable bearer of the Trimm surname was John Trimm (1601-1675), a renowned English mathematician and astronomer. He was born in Barkeston, Leicestershire, and made significant contributions to the fields of navigation and surveying.
Another historically significant figure with the Trimm surname was William Trimm (1727-1805), a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. He participated in several notable battles, including the Battle of the Chesapeake in 1781.
In the 19th century, the Trimm family had a presence in various parts of England, as evidenced by records such as the 1841 Census of England and Wales, which listed individuals with the surname in counties like Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, and Warwickshire.
A prominent member of the Trimm family during this period was Robert Trimm (1840-1912), a successful businessman and philanthropist from Birmingham. He made his fortune in the manufacturing industry and used his wealth to support various charitable causes.
Another noteworthy individual was Elizabeth Trimm (1862-1938), a pioneering English educator and suffragette. She campaigned tirelessly for women's rights and played a significant role in improving educational opportunities for girls in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The Trimm surname also has a long history in Ireland, where it is believed to have originated as a variant of the Irish surname Trumm or Trumme. Records from the 17th and 18th centuries show individuals with the surname Trimm residing in counties like Galway and Limerick.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Trimm
Among Census respondents with the surname Trimm, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.5%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Trimm 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 Trimm surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.8% · 1,477
- Black or African American8.5% · 154
- Two or more races4.3% · 77
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 60
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 28
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Trimm
Trimm 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
#14,571
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,044
+260 bearers (+14.6%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Up 596 places
2020
#15,581
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,806
-238 bearers (-11.6%)
Per 100,000 0.60
Rank movement Down 1,010 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,167 | 1,784 | 0.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,571 | 2,044 | 0.69 | +260 bearers (+14.6%) | Up 596 places |
| 2020 | #15,581 | 1,806 | 0.60 | -238 bearers (-11.6%) | Down 1,010 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 Trimm 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 | #14,571 | #15,581 | -6.9% |
| Count | 2,044 | 1,806 | -11.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.69 | 0.60 | -12.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Trimm bearers went from 2,044 to 1,806 (-11.6% change). The surname moved down 1,010 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,571 to #15,581.
FAQ
Trimm surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Trimm?
Name Census estimates that about 2,071 living Americans carry the surname Trimm. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 165,502 residents.
How common is Trimm?
Trimm ranks #15,581 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.60 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 1,806 people with the surname Trimm. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,071), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.6 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.60 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 Trimm.
Has Trimm become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Trimm went from 2,044 recorded bearers to 1,806. That is a decrease of 238 (-11.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,571 to #15,581.
What does the Census say about the background of Trimm?
Among Census respondents with the surname Trimm, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.5%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Trimm in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.8% (1,477 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Trimm appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.8%), Black (8.5%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Trimm (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 Trimm mean?
An English occupational surname for a carpenter or builder specializing in interior woodwork. 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 Trimm (0.60 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 Trimm?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Trimm at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.