2000
#15,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,721
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.64
Rare Last name
Trower
A name of occupational origin referring to a trumpet player or horn-blower.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,954 Americans carry the last name Trower. That puts it at #16,383 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.57 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 175,412 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Trower 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 Trower with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.0K
1 in 175,412
Census rank
#16,383
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,704 bearers of the surname Trower in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.57 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 16383rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Trower, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Trower
The surname Trower has its origins in England, with records of the name dating back to the 13th century. It is likely derived from the Old English word "trog," meaning a trough or a wooden vessel for holding water or food for animals. Over time, this word evolved into "trowere," which referred to a person who made or sold troughs or similar wooden vessels.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Trower can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, where a Henry le Trowere is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already established in that region during the 14th century.
In the 15th century, the surname appeared in various forms, such as Trowere, Trouere, and Trougher, reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling. The Trower family was particularly prominent in the counties of Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, and Somerset during this period.
The Trower surname is also associated with several place names, such as Trowers Hill in Worcestershire and Trowers Farm in Somerset. These place names may have derived from individuals bearing the surname or could have influenced the development of the surname itself.
Notable individuals with the surname Trower include:
1. John Trower (c. 1585-1666), an English soldier and politician who served as a Member of Parliament during the English Civil War.
2. Walter Trower (1666-1736), an English architect and surveyor who designed several churches and buildings in London.
3. Sarah Trower (1779-1856), a British author and educator who wrote several books on geography and history for children.
4. Edmund Trower (1825-1898), an English cricketer who played for Gloucestershire County Cricket Club in the 19th century.
5. George Trower (1872-1952), an English artist and illustrator known for his watercolor paintings of landscapes and rural scenes.
While the Trower surname has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, through emigration and migration patterns.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Trower
Among Census respondents with the surname Trower, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Trower 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 Trower surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.6% · 1,118
- Black or African American24.3% · 414
- Two or more races5.1% · 87
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 55
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Trower
Trower 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
#16,502
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,741
+20 bearers (+1.2%)
Per 100,000 0.59
Rank movement Down 912 places
2020
#16,383
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,704
-37 bearers (-2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.57
Rank movement Up 119 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,590 | 1,721 | 0.64 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #16,502 | 1,741 | 0.59 | +20 bearers (+1.2%) | Down 912 places |
| 2020 | #16,383 | 1,704 | 0.57 | -37 bearers (-2.1%) | Up 119 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 Trower 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 | #16,502 | #16,383 | 0.7% |
| Count | 1,741 | 1,704 | -2.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.59 | 0.57 | -3.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Trower bearers went from 1,741 to 1,704 (-2.1% change). The surname moved up 119 positions in the national ranking, going from #16,502 to #16,383.
FAQ
Trower surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Trower?
Name Census estimates that about 1,954 living Americans carry the surname Trower. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 175,412 residents.
How common is Trower?
Trower ranks #16,383 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.57 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 1,704 people with the surname Trower. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,954), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.57 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.57 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 Trower.
Has Trower become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Trower went from 1,741 recorded bearers to 1,704. That is a decrease of 37 (-2.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #16,502 to #16,383.
What does the Census say about the background of Trower?
Among Census respondents with the surname Trower, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (5.1%). 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 Trower in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.6% (1,118 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Trower appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.6%), Black (24.3%), Two or More Races (5.1%). 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 Trower (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 Trower mean?
A name of occupational origin referring to a trumpet player or horn-blower. 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 Trower (0.57 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 Trower?
See how many people have the surname Trower on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.