2000
#349
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 81,022
First available Census row
Per 100,000 30.03
Uncommon Last name
Mann
A surname of Germanic origin, meaning a person or a brave or strong man.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 94,581 Americans carry the last name Mann. That puts it at #381 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 27.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mann 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 Mann with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
95K
1 in 3,624
Census rank
#381
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
27.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
82K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 82,479 bearers of the surname Mann in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 27.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 381st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mann, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.7%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mann
The surname MANN is of Anglo-Saxon origin, deriving from the Old English word "mann" meaning "man" or "person." It is believed to have first emerged as a surname in England during the 11th century, initially used as a descriptive name to identify an individual by their gender.
The earliest recorded instance of the MANN surname appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Mann" in various counties across England, including Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, and Lincolnshire. This suggests that the name was already well-established in certain regions by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066.
During the Middle Ages, the MANN surname was widespread across England, particularly in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex. It is also found in various official records from this period, such as the Hundred Rolls of 1273 and the Pipe Rolls of 1195.
One of the earliest notable individuals bearing the MANN surname was John Mann, a prominent English merchant and financier who lived in the 13th century. He is recorded as having lent substantial sums of money to King Henry III and played a significant role in the economic affairs of the kingdom.
Another influential figure with the MANN surname was Thomas Mann, a 16th-century English bishop and theologian. Born in 1496, he served as Bishop of Ely from 1561 until his death in 1569 and was a prominent figure during the English Reformation.
During the 17th century, the MANN surname gained prominence in the American colonies, with several individuals bearing this name arriving in the New World. One notable example is Nathaniel Mann, who was born in 1646 in Massachusetts and served as a captain during King Philip's War, a conflict between English colonists and Native Americans.
In the 18th century, the MANN surname was associated with several notable figures in the fields of literature and science. Sir Horace Mann, born in 1701, was a British diplomat and author who served as the British Resident at the Court of Florence for nearly fifty years.
Another influential individual with the MANN surname was Theodore Mann, a German-American scientist and inventor born in 1735. He is credited with developing the first practical alcohol thermometer and making significant contributions to the field of thermometry.
As the MANN surname spread across different regions and countries, it also acquired various spellings and variations, such as Man, Manne, and Mannes, reflecting the influence of local dialects and languages. However, the original Anglo-Saxon spelling of "MANN" remained the most prevalent form throughout history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mann
Among Census respondents with the surname Mann, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.7%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Mann 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 Mann surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.7% · 63,273
- Black or African American9.6% · 7,952
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.8% · 3,974
- Two or more races4.1% · 3,341
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 2,980
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 959
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mann
Mann 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
#378
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 83,510
+2,488 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 28.31
Rank movement Down 29 places
2020
#381
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 82,479
-1,031 bearers (-1.2%)
Per 100,000 27.59
Rank movement Down 3 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #349 | 81,022 | 30.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #378 | 83,510 | 28.31 | +2,488 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 29 places |
| 2020 | #381 | 82,479 | 27.59 | -1,031 bearers (-1.2%) | Down 3 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 Mann 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 | #378 | #381 | -0.8% |
| Count | 83,510 | 82,479 | -1.2% |
| Per 100K | 28.31 | 27.59 | -2.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mann bearers went from 83,510 to 82,479 (-1.2% change). The surname moved down 3 positions in the national ranking, going from #378 to #381.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mann
FAQ
Mann surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mann?
Name Census estimates that about 94,581 living Americans carry the surname Mann. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,624 residents.
How common is Mann?
Mann ranks #381 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 27.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 28 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 82,479 people with the surname Mann. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (94,581), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 27.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 27.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 28 of them to have the surname Mann.
Has Mann become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mann went from 83,510 recorded bearers to 82,479. That is a decrease of 1,031 (-1.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #378 to #381.
What does the Census say about the background of Mann?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mann, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.7%. The next largest groups are Black (9.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.8%). 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 Mann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.7% (63,273 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mann appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.7%), Black (9.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.8%). 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 Mann (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 Mann mean?
A surname of Germanic origin, meaning a person or a brave or strong man. 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 Mann (27.59 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 Mann?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.