2000
#410
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 71,344
First available Census row
Per 100,000 26.45
Uncommon Last name
Curry
An occupational surname referring to a cook or seller of curry, a spiced dish.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 83,073 Americans carry the last name Curry. That puts it at #443 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 24.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,126 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Curry 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 Curry with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
83K
1 in 4,126
Census rank
#443
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
24.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
72K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 72,444 bearers of the surname Curry in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 24.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 443rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Curry, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.0%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Curry
The surname Curry is believed to have originated in Ireland and England, derived from the Old Norman word "cuire" which means "kitchen" or "cooking place." It is thought to have been an occupational surname given to those who worked as cooks or in the kitchens of wealthy households or castles.
The earliest known record of the name Curry dates back to the 13th century in England. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 mentions a Roger le Curye from Buckinghamshire. In Ireland, the name is found in the Annals of the Four Masters from the 14th century, referring to a family named O'Curaidh from County Cork.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir John Curry, a prominent English soldier and diplomat who served under King Edward III in the 14th century. He was knighted for his bravery in the Battle of Crécy during the Hundred Years' War.
In the 16th century, the Curry family held lands in County Sligo, Ireland, and were considered part of the Gaelic aristocracy. One notable member was Teige O'Curry, a leader of the O'Curry clan who fought against English forces during the Nine Years' War in the late 16th century.
During the English Civil War in the 17th century, Colonel Egbert Curry was a prominent Royalist officer who fought for King Charles I. He was later appointed Governor of Suriname in South America by King Charles II.
In the 18th century, Sir Montagu Curry was a British naval officer and explorer who served in the Royal Navy. He is known for his voyages to the South Pacific and his mapping of the Tuamotu Archipelago in French Polynesia.
Another notable bearer of the name was James Curry, an American Revolutionary War soldier and frontiersman. He served in the Continental Army and later settled in Tennessee, where he became a prominent figure in the state's early history.
The name Curry has also been associated with various place names, such as Curryhill in County Sligo, Ireland, and Curryville in Pennsylvania, United States. These places were likely named after early settlers or landowners with the surname Curry.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Curry
Among Census respondents with the surname Curry, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.0%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Curry 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 Curry surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White56.7% · 41,090
- Black or African American34.0% · 24,612
- Two or more races4.6% · 3,347
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 2,610
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 468
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 317
Timeline
Historical Census data for Curry
Curry 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
#436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 74,919
+3,575 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 25.40
Rank movement Down 26 places
2020
#443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 72,444
-2,475 bearers (-3.3%)
Per 100,000 24.24
Rank movement Down 7 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #410 | 71,344 | 26.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #436 | 74,919 | 25.40 | +3,575 bearers (+5.0%) | Down 26 places |
| 2020 | #443 | 72,444 | 24.24 | -2,475 bearers (-3.3%) | Down 7 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 Curry 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 | #436 | #443 | -1.6% |
| Count | 74,919 | 72,444 | -3.3% |
| Per 100K | 25.40 | 24.24 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Curry bearers went from 74,919 to 72,444 (-3.3% change). The surname moved down 7 positions in the national ranking, going from #436 to #443.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Curry
FAQ
Curry surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Curry?
Name Census estimates that about 83,073 living Americans carry the surname Curry. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,126 residents.
How common is Curry?
Curry ranks #443 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 24.24 per 100,000 residents, which is about 24 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 72,444 people with the surname Curry. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (83,073), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 24.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 24.24 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 24 of them to have the surname Curry.
Has Curry become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Curry went from 74,919 recorded bearers to 72,444. That is a decrease of 2,475 (-3.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #436 to #443.
What does the Census say about the background of Curry?
Among Census respondents with the surname Curry, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.0%) 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 Curry in the 2020 Census, accounting for 56.7% (41,090 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Curry appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (56.7%), Black (34.0%), 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 Curry (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 Curry mean?
An occupational surname referring to a cook or seller of curry, a spiced dish. 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 Curry (24.24 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 have the last name Curry?
Want to know how many people have the last name Curry? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.