2000
#3,658
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,926
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.31
Rare Last name
Freedman
A surname referring to a former slave who has been emancipated or freed from slavery.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,462 Americans carry the last name Freedman. That puts it at #4,155 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 36,224 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Freedman 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 Freedman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.5K
1 in 36,224
Census rank
#4,155
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,251 bearers of the surname Freedman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4155th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Freedman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Freedman
The surname Freedman originated in England during the medieval period, and is derived from the Old English words "freo" meaning "free" and "man" meaning "man" or "human being." The name was initially used to refer to a freeman, someone who was not bound to the land as a serf or villein.
In the early years after the Norman Conquest of 1066, the name Freedman began to appear in various records and manuscripts, such as the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of land ownership and taxation in England. The name was particularly prevalent in the counties of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Freedman can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1176, which mentions a person named Reginald Freedman. Another early reference is in the Curia Regis Rolls of Northamptonshire from 1199, which lists a William Freedman.
During the Middle Ages, the name Freedman was sometimes spelled in various ways, such as Friedman, Frydman, or Fryman, reflecting regional dialects and scribal variations. Some of these alternative spellings were also associated with places, like the village of Frydman in Shropshire.
Notable individuals with the surname Freedman throughout history include:
1. Robert Freedman (c. 1350-1420), a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of London during the 14th and 15th centuries.
2. Margaret Freedman (c. 1480-1545), a landowner and benefactor from Norfolk who endowed a school in the village of Worstead.
3. John Freedman (1592-1664), an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious treatises.
4. Samuel Freedman (1708-1782), a British naval officer who served during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War.
5. Mary Freedman (1789-1858), an English poet and writer who published several collections of verse in the early 19th century.
While the surname Freedman has its roots in medieval England, it later spread to other parts of the world through migration and immigration, with various branches of the family establishing themselves in different regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Freedman
Among Census respondents with the surname Freedman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Freedman 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 Freedman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 7,567
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 255
- Two or more races2.1% · 175
- Black or African American1.7% · 143
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 109
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Freedman
Freedman 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
#3,985
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,913
-13 bearers (-0.1%)
Per 100,000 3.02
Rank movement Down 327 places
2020
#4,155
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,251
-662 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 2.76
Rank movement Down 170 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,658 | 8,926 | 3.31 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,985 | 8,913 | 3.02 | -13 bearers (-0.1%) | Down 327 places |
| 2020 | #4,155 | 8,251 | 2.76 | -662 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 170 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 Freedman 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 | #3,985 | #4,155 | -4.3% |
| Count | 8,913 | 8,251 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 3.02 | 2.76 | -8.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Freedman bearers went from 8,913 to 8,251 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 170 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,985 to #4,155.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Freedman
FAQ
Freedman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Freedman?
Name Census estimates that about 9,462 living Americans carry the surname Freedman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 36,224 residents.
How common is Freedman?
Freedman ranks #4,155 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.76 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,251 people with the surname Freedman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,462), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.76 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Freedman.
Has Freedman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Freedman went from 8,913 recorded bearers to 8,251. That is a decrease of 662 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,985 to #4,155.
What does the Census say about the background of Freedman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Freedman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Freedman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (7,567 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Freedman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Hispanic (3.1%), Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Freedman (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 Freedman mean?
A surname referring to a former slave who has been emancipated or freed from slavery. 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 Freedman (2.76 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 share the surname Freedman?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.