2000
#8,808
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,424
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.27
Rare Last name
Woodrum
Derived from a place name meaning "clearing in the woods" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,678 Americans carry the last name Woodrum. That puts it at #9,666 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 93,190 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Woodrum 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.
Bearers in the US
3.7K
1 in 93,190
Census rank
#9,666
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,207 bearers of the surname Woodrum in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9666th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Woodrum, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Woodrum
The surname Woodrum is of English origin, dating back to the 11th century. It is believed to have originated from the Old English words "wudu" meaning wood and "rum" meaning open space or clearing. This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived in or near a clearing in a wooded area.
The earliest known record of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Woderum". This entry indicates that the name was already well-established in England during the Norman Conquest.
In the 13th century, variations of the name such as "Wodrum" and "Woodroome" began to appear in various medieval records and manuscripts. These spellings reflect the evolution of the English language and the gradual standardization of surnames.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir John Woodrum, a prominent English knight who lived in the late 13th century. He is mentioned in several historical documents from that period, including the Pipe Rolls of 1290.
During the 16th century, the name Woodrum was found in various locations across England, with notable concentrations in the counties of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Nottinghamshire. This suggests that the name may have originated in one of these regions before spreading to other parts of the country.
Another notable figure with the surname Woodrum was William Woodrum, a merchant and landowner who lived in London during the 17th century. He was involved in the city's thriving trade with the American colonies and is recorded as having owned properties in the city.
In the 18th century, the Woodrum family produced several notable figures, including Thomas Woodrum (1712-1789), a British military officer who served in the Seven Years' War, and Mary Woodrum (1746-1812), a renowned author and poet whose works were widely published during her lifetime.
As the centuries passed, the Woodrum name continued to be found across various parts of England, with some bearers of the name eventually migrating to other countries, including the United States and Canada.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Woodrum
Among Census respondents with the surname Woodrum, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Woodrum 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 Woodrum surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 2,951
- Two or more races3.6% · 116
- Hispanic or Latino2.2% · 71
- Black or African American1.4% · 45
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Woodrum
Woodrum 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
#9,583
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,392
-32 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 1.15
Rank movement Down 775 places
2020
#9,666
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,207
-185 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 83 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,808 | 3,424 | 1.27 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,583 | 3,392 | 1.15 | -32 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 775 places |
| 2020 | #9,666 | 3,207 | 1.07 | -185 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 83 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 Woodrum 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 | #9,583 | #9,666 | -0.9% |
| Count | 3,392 | 3,207 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.15 | 1.07 | -6.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Woodrum bearers went from 3,392 to 3,207 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 83 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,583 to #9,666.
FAQ
Woodrum surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Woodrum?
Name Census estimates that about 3,678 living Americans carry the surname Woodrum. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 93,190 residents.
How common is Woodrum?
Woodrum ranks #9,666 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.07 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 3,207 people with the surname Woodrum. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,678), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.07 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 Woodrum.
Has Woodrum become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Woodrum went from 3,392 recorded bearers to 3,207. That is a decrease of 185 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,583 to #9,666.
What does the Census say about the background of Woodrum?
Among Census respondents with the surname Woodrum, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.2%). 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 Woodrum in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (2,951 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Woodrum appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.0%), Two or More Races (3.6%), Hispanic (2.2%). 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 Woodrum (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 Woodrum mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "clearing in the woods" in Old English. 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 Woodrum (1.07 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 are called Woodrum?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Woodrum, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.