2000
#13,071
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,148
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.80
Rare Last name
Wilmer
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements wil, meaning "desire," and meri, meaning "famous."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,224 Americans carry the last name Wilmer. That puts it at #14,704 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.65 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 154,116 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wilmer 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 Wilmer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.2K
1 in 154,116
Census rank
#14,704
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,939 bearers of the surname Wilmer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.65 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14704th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilmer, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.8%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) and Hispanic (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wilmer
The surname Wilmer has its origins in England, with the earliest recorded use dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "wil" meaning "willow" and "mere" meaning "lake" or "pool." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a willow-fringed lake or pool.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, there is a mention of a landowner named "Wlmarus" in Gloucestershire. This is likely one of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wilmer or a variation thereof.
The name Wilmer can also be traced back to the village of Wilmere in Hertfordshire, which was mentioned in records as early as the 13th century. This place name is thought to have influenced the development of the surname in that region.
One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Wilmer was John Wilmer, born around 1350 in Broughton, Buckinghamshire. Another notable figure was William Wilmer, a 16th-century English clergyman who served as the Dean of Norwich Cathedral from 1608 to 1617.
In the 17th century, James Wilmer (1585-1641), an English politician and landowner, was a member of the House of Commons representing Nottingham. His son, William Wilmer (1621-1686), was a notable Puritan minister who fled to Virginia during the English Civil War.
A prominent figure in American history with the surname Wilmer was William Holland Wilmer (1782-1827), an Episcopal bishop in Virginia and the first President of the House of Deputies of the Episcopal Church in the United States.
Throughout its history, the Wilmer surname has seen various spellings, including Willmere, Wilmere, and Wylmere, reflecting the regional variations and changes in language over time. Despite these variations, the name has maintained its connection to its English roots and the geographic features that inspired its origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wilmer
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilmer, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.8%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) and Hispanic (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Wilmer 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 Wilmer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White58.8% · 1,140
- Black or African American30.4% · 590
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 90
- Two or more races4.1% · 80
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.5% · 29
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wilmer
Wilmer 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
#13,622
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,224
+76 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 551 places
2020
#14,704
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,939
-285 bearers (-12.8%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Down 1,082 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,071 | 2,148 | 0.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,622 | 2,224 | 0.75 | +76 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 551 places |
| 2020 | #14,704 | 1,939 | 0.65 | -285 bearers (-12.8%) | Down 1,082 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 Wilmer 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 | #13,622 | #14,704 | -7.9% |
| Count | 2,224 | 1,939 | -12.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.75 | 0.65 | -13.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wilmer bearers went from 2,224 to 1,939 (-12.8% change). The surname moved down 1,082 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,622 to #14,704.
FAQ
Wilmer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wilmer?
Name Census estimates that about 2,224 living Americans carry the surname Wilmer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 154,116 residents.
How common is Wilmer?
Wilmer ranks #14,704 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.65 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 1,939 people with the surname Wilmer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,224), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.65 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.65 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 Wilmer.
Has Wilmer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wilmer went from 2,224 recorded bearers to 1,939. That is a decrease of 285 (-12.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,622 to #14,704.
What does the Census say about the background of Wilmer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilmer, the largest self-reported group is White at 58.8%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) and Hispanic (4.6%). 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 Wilmer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.8% (1,140 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wilmer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (58.8%), Black (30.4%), Hispanic (4.6%). 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 Wilmer (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 Wilmer mean?
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements wil, meaning "desire," and meri, meaning "famous." 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 Wilmer (0.65 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 surname Wilmer?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.