2000
#356
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 80,030
First available Census row
Per 100,000 29.67
Common Last name
Joseph
A biblical surname referring to the husband of Mary, mother of Jesus, or to a descendent of his lineage.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124,919 Americans carry the last name Joseph. That puts it at #283 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 36.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,744 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Joseph 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 Joseph with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
125K
1 in 2,744
Census rank
#283
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
36.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108,935 bearers of the surname Joseph in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 36.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 283rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Joseph, the largest self-reported group is Black at 55.5%. The next largest groups are White (24.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Joseph
The surname Joseph originated from the biblical Hebrew given name Yosef, meaning "he will add" or "he will increase." It is derived from the root yasaf, meaning "to add" or "to increase." The name gained popularity during the medieval period, particularly in regions with a significant Christian presence.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Joseph can be traced back to the 12th century in England and France. In the Domesday Book, a record of landowners in England compiled in 1086, there are several references to individuals with the given name Joseph, indicating its usage at the time.
Joseph is a patronymic surname, meaning it was initially derived from the given name of a father or ancestor. It became a hereditary surname as families began adopting fixed surnames in the 12th and 13th centuries. The surname was particularly prevalent in areas with strong Christian traditions, such as England, France, and parts of Germany and Italy.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the surname Joseph was William Joseph, who lived in Gloucestershire, England, in the late 12th century. Another notable early bearer was Sir John Joseph, a knight who fought in the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 during the Hundred Years' War between England and France.
In the 16th century, the surname Joseph gained prominence in various parts of Europe, with notable figures such as the Italian painter Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1526-1593) and the German composer and organist Johann Joseph Fux (1660-1741).
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the surname Joseph spread to other parts of the world through migration and exploration. Notable individuals from this period include the French explorer Pierre-Joseph Céloron de Blainville (1693-1759), who explored the Ohio River Valley in North America, and the American Quaker minister Joseph Oxley (1715-1786), who was instrumental in the establishment of Quaker settlements in Pennsylvania.
Other notable bearers of the surname Joseph throughout history include the British explorer and surveyor Joseph Banks (1743-1820), who accompanied Captain James Cook on his famous voyages, and the American playwright and screenwriter Joseph L. Mankiewicz (1909-1993), known for films such as "All About Eve" and "Cleopatra."
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Joseph
Among Census respondents with the surname Joseph, the largest self-reported group is Black at 55.5%. The next largest groups are White (24.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Joseph 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 Joseph surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American55.5% · 60,478
- White24.3% · 26,468
- Asian and Pacific Islander12.1% · 13,222
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 4,065
- Two or more races3.5% · 3,804
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 898
Timeline
Historical Census data for Joseph
Joseph 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
#313
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100,959
+20,929 bearers (+26.2%)
Per 100,000 34.23
Rank movement Up 43 places
2020
#283
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108,935
+7,976 bearers (+7.9%)
Per 100,000 36.45
Rank movement Up 30 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #356 | 80,030 | 29.67 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #313 | 100,959 | 34.23 | +20,929 bearers (+26.2%) | Up 43 places |
| 2020 | #283 | 108,935 | 36.45 | +7,976 bearers (+7.9%) | Up 30 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 Joseph 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 | #313 | #283 | 9.6% |
| Count | 100,959 | 108,935 | 7.9% |
| Per 100K | 34.23 | 36.45 | 6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Joseph bearers went from 100,959 to 108,935 (+7.9% change). The surname moved up 30 positions in the national ranking, going from #313 to #283.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Joseph
FAQ
Joseph surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Joseph?
Name Census estimates that about 124,919 living Americans carry the surname Joseph. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,744 residents.
How common is Joseph?
Joseph ranks #283 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 36.45 per 100,000 residents, which is about 36 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 108,935 people with the surname Joseph. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124,919), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 36.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 36.45 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 36 of them to have the surname Joseph.
Has Joseph become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Joseph went from 100,959 recorded bearers to 108,935. That is an increase of 7,976 (+7.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #313 to #283.
What does the Census say about the background of Joseph?
Among Census respondents with the surname Joseph, the largest self-reported group is Black at 55.5%. The next largest groups are White (24.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.1%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Joseph in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.5% (60,478 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Joseph appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (55.5%), White (24.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (12.1%). 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 Joseph (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 Joseph mean?
A biblical surname referring to the husband of Mary, mother of Jesus, or to a descendent of his lineage. 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 Joseph (36.45 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 Joseph?
You can see how many people have the surname Joseph on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.