2000
#8,273
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,683
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.37
Rare Last name
Wiggs
An English occupational surname for a maker or seller of wigs or wool.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,975 Americans carry the last name Wiggs. That puts it at #9,051 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.16 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 86,228 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wiggs 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 Wiggs with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 86,228
Census rank
#9,051
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,466 bearers of the surname Wiggs in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.16 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9051st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wiggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.7%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wiggs
The surname Wiggs is believed to have originated in England during the Anglo-Saxon period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "wig" or "wic," meaning a dwelling or a village. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in a particular village or settlement.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wiggs can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of land and property in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The entry mentions a landowner named "Wigga" in Lincolnshire.
During the Middle Ages, the name appeared in various historical documents and manuscripts with slight variations in spelling, such as "Wigge," "Wygge," and "Wygges." These variations were common due to the lack of standardized spelling conventions at the time.
In the 13th century, there are records of a person named John Wiggs who held land in Somerset, England. Another notable individual was Sir Thomas Wiggs, a member of the English gentry who lived in the 15th century and served as a member of the Parliament of England.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Wiggs surname was Robert Wiggs, born in 1520 in Gloucestershire, England. He was a prominent merchant and landowner during the Tudor period.
In the 17th century, the name Wiggs was also found in the parish records of several villages in Oxfordshire, such as Bampton and Charlbury, suggesting that the name had spread to different parts of England.
During the 18th century, a notable figure with the Wiggs surname was Sir William Wiggs, a British military officer who served in the American Revolutionary War. He was born in 1732 and played a significant role in several battles against the American colonists.
Another individual of note was Elizabeth Wiggs, an English author and poet who lived from 1765 to 1842. She published several works of poetry and prose that were popular during her lifetime.
Throughout the 19th century, the Wiggs surname continued to be present in various parts of England, as well as in the United States, where it was carried by English immigrants who settled in different regions of the country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wiggs
Among Census respondents with the surname Wiggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.7%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Wiggs 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 Wiggs surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.0% · 2,495
- Black or African American19.7% · 682
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 120
- Two or more races3.4% · 117
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 34
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wiggs
Wiggs 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
#9,058
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,608
-75 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 1.22
Rank movement Down 785 places
2020
#9,051
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,466
-142 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 1.16
Rank movement Up 7 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,273 | 3,683 | 1.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,058 | 3,608 | 1.22 | -75 bearers (-2.0%) | Down 785 places |
| 2020 | #9,051 | 3,466 | 1.16 | -142 bearers (-3.9%) | Up 7 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 Wiggs 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 | #9,058 | #9,051 | 0.1% |
| Count | 3,608 | 3,466 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.22 | 1.16 | -5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wiggs bearers went from 3,608 to 3,466 (-3.9% change). The surname moved up 7 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,058 to #9,051.
FAQ
Wiggs surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wiggs?
Name Census estimates that about 3,975 living Americans carry the surname Wiggs. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 86,228 residents.
How common is Wiggs?
Wiggs ranks #9,051 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.16 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 3,466 people with the surname Wiggs. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,975), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.16 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.16 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 Wiggs.
Has Wiggs become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wiggs went from 3,608 recorded bearers to 3,466. That is a decrease of 142 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,058 to #9,051.
What does the Census say about the background of Wiggs?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wiggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.7%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Wiggs in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.0% (2,495 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wiggs appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.0%), Black (19.7%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Wiggs (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 Wiggs mean?
An English occupational surname for a maker or seller of wigs or wool. 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 Wiggs (1.16 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 Wiggs?
If you just want to know how many people are called Wiggs, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.