2000
#2,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,799
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.37
Uncommon Last name
Waterman
An occupational surname referring to a person who transported water or worked on or near water.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 13,214 Americans carry the last name Waterman. That puts it at #3,043 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 25,939 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Waterman 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 Waterman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
13K
1 in 25,939
Census rank
#3,043
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
12K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 11,523 bearers of the surname Waterman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3043rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Waterman, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Waterman
The surname WATERMAN is of English origin and dates back to the medieval period. It is an occupational surname derived from the Old English words "wæter" meaning water and "mann" meaning man, referring to someone who worked on or around water, such as a ferryman, boatman, or bargeman.
The name was particularly common in areas near rivers, lakes, or coastal regions where water transportation and related occupations were prevalent. Early records from the 13th and 14th centuries show variations in spelling, including Waterman, Watirman, and Watyrman.
One of the earliest known references to the name WATERMAN can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire from 1273, which mentions a Thomas Waterman. The Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296 also record a John le Waterman.
In the 14th century, the surname WATERMAN appeared in the Chancery Proceedings from London, suggesting its presence in the capital city. The Lay Subsidy Rolls of Wiltshire from 1332 list a Willelmus Waterman.
Notable individuals with the surname WATERMAN throughout history include:
1. Robert Waterman (c. 1492-1555), an English Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake during the Marian Persecutions.
2. Thomas Waterman (c. 1545-1622), an English clergyman and one of the earliest settlers of Rhode Island, arriving in 1638.
3. Thomas Waterman (1720-1796), an American surveyor and soldier from Connecticut who served in the American Revolutionary War.
4. Arrah Wanna Waterman (1778-1861), a Native American woman from the Mohegan tribe, known for her basket weaving and storytelling.
5. Robert Whitney Waterman (1826-1891), an American businessman and military officer who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
These are just a few examples of historical figures who bore the surname WATERMAN, reflecting its longstanding presence in various parts of England and later, the American colonies.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Waterman
Among Census respondents with the surname Waterman, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Waterman 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 Waterman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.4% · 9,615
- Black or African American7.2% · 835
- Two or more races3.9% · 446
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 413
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 133
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 81
Timeline
Historical Census data for Waterman
Waterman 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
#2,947
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,177
+378 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 4.13
Rank movement Down 150 places
2020
#3,043
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,523
-654 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 3.86
Rank movement Down 96 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,797 | 11,799 | 4.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,947 | 12,177 | 4.13 | +378 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 150 places |
| 2020 | #3,043 | 11,523 | 3.86 | -654 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 96 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 Waterman 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 | #2,947 | #3,043 | -3.3% |
| Count | 12,177 | 11,523 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 4.13 | 3.86 | -6.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Waterman bearers went from 12,177 to 11,523 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 96 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,947 to #3,043.
FAQ
Waterman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Waterman?
Name Census estimates that about 13,214 living Americans carry the surname Waterman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 25,939 residents.
How common is Waterman?
Waterman ranks #3,043 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.86 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 11,523 people with the surname Waterman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (13,214), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.86 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Waterman.
Has Waterman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Waterman went from 12,177 recorded bearers to 11,523. That is a decrease of 654 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,947 to #3,043.
What does the Census say about the background of Waterman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Waterman, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Waterman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.4% (9,615 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Waterman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.4%), Black (7.2%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Waterman (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 Waterman mean?
An occupational surname referring to a person who transported water or worked on or near water. 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 Waterman (3.86 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 Waterman?
You can see how many people have the surname Waterman on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.