2000
#3,025
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,989
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.07
Uncommon Last name
Ayres
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a patch of open ground, grassy area, or pasture.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 12,332 Americans carry the last name Ayres. That puts it at #3,277 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.60 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 27,794 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ayres 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 Ayres with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
12K
1 in 27,794
Census rank
#3,277
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,754 bearers of the surname Ayres in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.60 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3277th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ayres, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ayres
The surname Ayres has its origins in England. It is a locational name derived from the Old English words 'eg' meaning 'island' and 'ar' meaning 'dwelling'. It referred to someone who lived by a river island or a low-lying meadow near a stream.
The name first appeared in records from the 12th century. The earliest recorded spelling was Ayers in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1176. It was also recorded as Ayres in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273 and as Ayre in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327.
During the Middle Ages, the name was found predominantly in the counties of Lincolnshire, Oxfordshire, and Sussex. Some early bearers of the name included John Ayres, mentioned in the Curia Regis Rolls of Huntingdonshire in 1221, and William Ayers, recorded in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327.
The Ayres name has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Sir John Ayres (c. 1590-1658), an English soldier and politician who served as Governor of Virginia from 1625 to 1627. Another prominent figure was Rene Ayres (1625-1670), a French philosopher and mathematician who made significant contributions to the field of probability theory.
In the literary world, the name is associated with John Ayres (1688-1758), an English poet and playwright, and Lew Ayres (1908-1996), an American actor best known for his role in the film "All Quiet on the Western Front" (1930). Another notable bearer of the name was Sir Robert Ayres (1786-1873), a British naval officer and explorer who surveyed the coast of Australia.
Other individuals of note include John Ayres (1625-1696), an English sculptor who created monuments and memorials in several churches in London, and Philip Ayres (1638-1712), an English organist and composer who served as the Master of the Children of the Chapel Royal.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ayres
Among Census respondents with the surname Ayres, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Ayres 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 Ayres surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.4% · 9,079
- Black or African American5.8% · 622
- Two or more races4.6% · 492
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 423
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 93
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 45
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ayres
Ayres 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
#3,241
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,139
+150 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 3.78
Rank movement Down 216 places
2020
#3,277
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,754
-385 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 3.60
Rank movement Down 36 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,025 | 10,989 | 4.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,241 | 11,139 | 3.78 | +150 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 216 places |
| 2020 | #3,277 | 10,754 | 3.60 | -385 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 36 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 Ayres 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 | #3,241 | #3,277 | -1.1% |
| Count | 11,139 | 10,754 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 3.78 | 3.60 | -4.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ayres bearers went from 11,139 to 10,754 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 36 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,241 to #3,277.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Ayres
FAQ
Ayres surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ayres?
Name Census estimates that about 12,332 living Americans carry the surname Ayres. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 27,794 residents.
How common is Ayres?
Ayres ranks #3,277 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.60 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 10,754 people with the surname Ayres. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (12,332), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.6 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.60 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Ayres.
Has Ayres become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ayres went from 11,139 recorded bearers to 10,754. That is a decrease of 385 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,241 to #3,277.
What does the Census say about the background of Ayres?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ayres, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (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 Ayres in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.4% (9,079 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ayres appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.4%), Black (5.8%), Two or More Races (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 Ayres (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 Ayres mean?
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a patch of open ground, grassy area, or pasture. 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 Ayres (3.60 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 Americans have the surname Ayres?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.