2000
#5,274
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,071
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.25
Rare Last name
Abercrombie
From a place name meaning "mouth of the bendy river" in Gaelic, likely referring to the River Crombie.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,198 Americans carry the last name Abercrombie. That puts it at #5,362 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.10 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 47,618 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Abercrombie 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 Abercrombie with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.2K
1 in 47,618
Census rank
#5,362
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,277 bearers of the surname Abercrombie in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.10 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5362nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Abercrombie, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.4%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Abercrombie
The surname Abercrombie is of Scottish origin and can be traced back to the 12th century. It derives from the Gaelic words 'Aber' meaning 'confluence of waters' and 'crombie' which was the name of a small place near the River Forth in West Lothian, Scotland. The earliest known spelling of the name was 'Abircrumby' which appeared in records from the late 12th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Abercrombie name was in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a series of medieval homage rolls documenting the Scottish nobility's sworn allegiance to King Edward I of England. The name William de Abyrcromby appears on these records. Another early record dates back to 1329 when John de Abircromby witnessed a charter granted by Robert I, King of Scots.
In the 15th century, the Abercrombie family held lands in the parish of Tullibody, Clackmannanshire. A record from 1489 mentions Alexander Abircromby being granted a charter of lands in Fife. By the 16th century, the name had evolved to its modern spelling.
One notable person with this surname was Sir Ralph Abercromby (1734-1801), a Scottish soldier and politician. He served as a general in the British Army and played a key role in several major campaigns during the French Revolutionary Wars.
Another famous Abercrombie was John Abercrombie (1780-1844), a Scottish physician and philosopher. He published several influential works on intellectual philosophy and was a prominent figure in the Scottish Enlightenment.
In the field of literature, Lascelles Abercrombie (1881-1938) was an English poet and literary critic. He was associated with the Georgian Poetry movement and wrote several volumes of poetry, including "Interludes and Poems" and "The Sale of St. Thomas".
The name Abercrombie is also linked to the town of Abercrombie in New South Wales, Australia, which was named after James Abercrombie, a colonial surveyor and explorer in the early 19th century.
Finally, one cannot discuss the Abercrombie name without mentioning David Abercrombie (1867-1926), a Scottish-American businessman who co-founded the clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch in 1892.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Abercrombie
Among Census respondents with the surname Abercrombie, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.4%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Abercrombie 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 Abercrombie surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.4% · 4,734
- Black or African American15.9% · 998
- Two or more races4.1% · 257
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 214
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 41
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 33
Timeline
Historical Census data for Abercrombie
Abercrombie 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
#5,405
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,439
+368 bearers (+6.1%)
Per 100,000 2.18
Rank movement Down 131 places
2020
#5,362
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,277
-162 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 2.10
Rank movement Up 43 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,274 | 6,071 | 2.25 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,405 | 6,439 | 2.18 | +368 bearers (+6.1%) | Down 131 places |
| 2020 | #5,362 | 6,277 | 2.10 | -162 bearers (-2.5%) | Up 43 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 Abercrombie 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 | #5,405 | #5,362 | 0.8% |
| Count | 6,439 | 6,277 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.18 | 2.10 | -3.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Abercrombie bearers went from 6,439 to 6,277 (-2.5% change). The surname moved up 43 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,405 to #5,362.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Abercrombie
FAQ
Abercrombie surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Abercrombie?
Name Census estimates that about 7,198 living Americans carry the surname Abercrombie. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 47,618 residents.
How common is Abercrombie?
Abercrombie ranks #5,362 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.10 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,277 people with the surname Abercrombie. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,198), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.10 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Abercrombie.
Has Abercrombie become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Abercrombie went from 6,439 recorded bearers to 6,277. That is a decrease of 162 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,405 to #5,362.
What does the Census say about the background of Abercrombie?
Among Census respondents with the surname Abercrombie, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.4%. The next largest groups are Black (15.9%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Abercrombie in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.4% (4,734 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Abercrombie appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.4%), Black (15.9%), Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Abercrombie (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 Abercrombie mean?
From a place name meaning "mouth of the bendy river" in Gaelic, likely referring to the River Crombie. 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 Abercrombie (2.10 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 Abercrombie?
You can see how many people have the surname Abercrombie on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.