2000
#10,186
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,906
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.08
Rare Last name
Yarber
An English occupational surname for someone who combs and prepares fibers for spinning into cloth.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,385 Americans carry the last name Yarber. That puts it at #10,380 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.99 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 101,257 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Yarber 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
3.4K
1 in 101,257
Census rank
#10,380
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,952 bearers of the surname Yarber in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.99 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10380th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Yarber, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.1%. The next largest groups are Black (24.4%) and Two or More Races (5.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Yarber
The surname Yarber has its origins in England, tracing back to the early Middle Ages. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "gearr" and "burna," which translate to "sharp" and "stream" respectively. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone living near a sharp or swift-flowing stream.
Records indicate that the surname Yarber was present in various parts of England, including Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, and Lancashire. One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Staffordshire from the year 1195, where a person named William Yarber is mentioned.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various spellings, such as "Yerber," "Yerburgh," and "Yarbrough." These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and the inconsistent spelling conventions of the time.
The Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landowners and properties in England compiled in 1086, does not contain any direct mentions of the surname Yarber. However, it is possible that the name's origins can be traced back to individuals or locations recorded in this important historical document.
One of the earliest known individuals bearing the surname Yarber was John Yarber, born in Yorkshire around 1420. Another notable figure was William Yarber, a merchant from Lancashire who lived in the late 16th century.
In the 17th century, the Yarber surname gained prominence with the birth of Sir Thomas Yarber (1637-1712), a prominent English landowner and member of Parliament. His grandson, also named Thomas Yarber (1675-1738), was a renowned scholar and author.
Other individuals of historical significance with the surname Yarber include:
1. Richard Yarber (1712-1782), an English clergyman and theologian.
2. Elizabeth Yarber (1745-1820), a celebrated writer and poet from Lincolnshire.
3. James Yarber (1793-1867), a pioneering explorer and naturalist who documented the flora and fauna of the American West.
4. Charlotte Yarber (1819-1901), a prominent philanthropist and social reformer in London.
5. William Yarber (1854-1932), a successful industrialist and founder of the Yarber Manufacturing Company in Manchester.
While the surname Yarber is not among the most common in England, it has endured for centuries and has been borne by numerous individuals who have made notable contributions across various fields.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Yarber
Among Census respondents with the surname Yarber, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.1%. The next largest groups are Black (24.4%) and Two or More Races (5.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Yarber 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 Yarber surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.1% · 1,950
- Black or African American24.4% · 719
- Two or more races5.9% · 175
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 83
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Yarber
Yarber 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
#10,258
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,142
+236 bearers (+8.1%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 72 places
2020
#10,380
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,952
-190 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 122 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,186 | 2,906 | 1.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,258 | 3,142 | 1.07 | +236 bearers (+8.1%) | Down 72 places |
| 2020 | #10,380 | 2,952 | 0.99 | -190 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 122 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 Yarber 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 | #10,258 | #10,380 | -1.2% |
| Count | 3,142 | 2,952 | -6.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.07 | 0.99 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Yarber bearers went from 3,142 to 2,952 (-6.0% change). The surname moved down 122 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,258 to #10,380.
FAQ
Yarber surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Yarber?
Name Census estimates that about 3,385 living Americans carry the surname Yarber. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 101,257 residents.
How common is Yarber?
Yarber ranks #10,380 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.99 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 2,952 people with the surname Yarber. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,385), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.99 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.99 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 Yarber.
Has Yarber become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Yarber went from 3,142 recorded bearers to 2,952. That is a decrease of 190 (-6.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,258 to #10,380.
What does the Census say about the background of Yarber?
Among Census respondents with the surname Yarber, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.1%. The next largest groups are Black (24.4%) and Two or More Races (5.9%). 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 Yarber in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.1% (1,950 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Yarber appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (66.1%), Black (24.4%), Two or More Races (5.9%). 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 Yarber (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 Yarber mean?
An English occupational surname for someone who combs and prepares fibers for spinning into cloth. 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 Yarber (0.99 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 common is the surname Yarber?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Yarber at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.