Worman last name popularity, history, and meaning

Find out how popular the last name Worman is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Worman.

Meaning of Worman

A surname referring to a person whose occupation involved earthworms or soils.

Worman, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Worman surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Worman in America

Worman is the 18018th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Worman surname appeared 1,549 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Worman.

We can also compare 2010 data for Worman to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 18018 16494 8.83%
Count 1,549 1,604 -3.49%
Proportion per 100k 0.53 0.59 -10.71%

The history of the last name Worman

The surname Worman likely originates from English or German roots. The name can be traced back to Anglo-Saxon England, where it might have appeared in various forms such as "Were," "Weyr," or "Wyrm." Another plausible origin is from the German word "Wurm," which translates to "worm" in English, often used metaphorically to describe a humble or insignificant person. This surname also has ties to the Old Norse word "Ormr," meaning "serpent" or "dragon," suggesting a possible Viking influence in some regions.

Historical references to the surname Worman can be found in medieval documents. One of the earliest known recordings of the name in England appears in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, a census commissioned by King Edward I, where a Richard Worman is noted in Cambridgeshire. The name is also found in various spellings in early parish registers, wills, and land grants during the 14th and 15th centuries, highlighting its presence in medieval England.

In Germany, records from the Holy Roman Empire era document the surname in regions like Franconia and Swabia. A notable mention includes Johannes Worman, a 15th-century inhabitant of Nuremberg, who is listed in city tax records dating back to 1478. Other examples include Hans Worman, recorded in the city of Ulm's municipal records in the early 1500s, demonstrating the surname's Germanic roots.

Famous individuals bearing the surname Worman include George Worman, an English soldier born in 1615 who fought in the English Civil War and was noted for his service to the Royalist cause. Another prominent figure is Hermann Worman, a classical scholar born in 1840 in Germany, recognized for his contributions to the study of Ancient Greek philosophy during the late 19th century. Hannah Worman, an early American settler born in 1660, is among the first recorded instances of the surname in colonial America, indicating the migration of the name across the Atlantic.

In the 19th century, the name appears in the United States with people such as Henry Worman, born in 1829, who became a notable figure in the field of agricultural advancements in Pennsylvania. Elizabeth Worman, born in 1854, gained recognition for her work in education reform and women's rights in the late 1800s.

Overall, the surname Worman shows a rich historical tapestry intertwined with Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and German influences, evident through various historical documents, notable figures, and familial migrations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Worman

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Worman.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

  1. White only
  2. Black only
  3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
  4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
  5. Hispanic
  6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Worman was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.51% 1,464
Non-Hispanic Black Only 1.03% 16
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.32% 5
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.32% 5
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.00% 31
Hispanic Origin 1.81% 28

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Worman has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.51% 96.26% -1.83%
Black 1.03% 0.81% 23.91%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.32% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.32% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 2.00% 0.87% 78.75%
Hispanic 1.81% 1.37% 27.67%

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Worman was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Worman, please contact us.

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"Worman last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/worman-surname-popularity/.

"Worman last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/worman-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Worman last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/worman-surname-popularity/.

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