2000
#585
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 51,796
First available Census row
Per 100,000 19.20
Uncommon Last name
Mathis
A patronymic surname derived from the given name Matthew, meaning "gift of Yahweh" in Hebrew.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 58,897 Americans carry the last name Mathis. That puts it at #645 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 17.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 5,820 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mathis 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 Mathis with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
59K
1 in 5,820
Census rank
#645
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
17.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
51K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 51,361 bearers of the surname Mathis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 17.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 645th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mathis, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.6%. The next largest groups are Black (31.8%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mathis
The surname Mathis is of French origin, derived from the given name Matthieu, which is the French form of the biblical name Matthew. The name Matthew is derived from the Hebrew name Mattityahu, meaning "gift of Yahweh" or "gift of God."
The earliest known record of the surname Mathis dates back to the 12th century in the region of Normandy, France. During the Middle Ages, the name was often spelled as Mathieu, Mathieu, or Mathis. It is believed that the name was brought to other parts of Europe by Norman settlers and crusaders.
In the 13th century, the name Mathis appeared in various records and manuscripts, including the Domesday Book, which was a survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in England in 1086. The name Mathis was also found in the Pipe Rolls, which were financial records kept by the Exchequer of England during the 12th and 13th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Mathis was Jean Mathis, a French nobleman born in the late 13th century. He was a prominent figure in the court of King Philip IV of France, known as Philip the Fair, who ruled from 1285 to 1314.
In the 15th century, Jacques Mathis (c. 1420-1490) was a notable French painter and manuscript illuminator who worked in the city of Rouen. His works can be found in various museums and collections across Europe.
During the 16th century, Pierre Mathis (1535-1609) was a French lawyer and jurist who served as a judge in the Parlement of Paris. He was known for his expertise in French law and his writings on legal matters.
In the 17th century, Jean-Baptiste Mathis (1617-1676) was a French composer and organist who worked in the court of Louis XIV. He is remembered for his contributions to the development of French baroque music.
Another notable figure with the surname Mathis was Georges Mathis (1826-1910), a French politician and statesman who served as the Prime Minister of France from 1905 to 1906.
Throughout history, the surname Mathis has also been associated with various place names, such as Mathis in the department of Calvados, Normandy, and Mathis-sur-Huisne in the department of Orne, both in France.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mathis
Among Census respondents with the surname Mathis, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.6%. The next largest groups are Black (31.8%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Mathis 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 Mathis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.6% · 30,616
- Black or African American31.8% · 16,312
- Two or more races4.3% · 2,210
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 1,713
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 282
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 228
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mathis
Mathis 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
#625
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 54,217
+2,421 bearers (+4.7%)
Per 100,000 18.38
Rank movement Down 40 places
2020
#645
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 51,361
-2,856 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 17.18
Rank movement Down 20 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #585 | 51,796 | 19.20 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #625 | 54,217 | 18.38 | +2,421 bearers (+4.7%) | Down 40 places |
| 2020 | #645 | 51,361 | 17.18 | -2,856 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 20 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 Mathis 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 | #625 | #645 | -3.2% |
| Count | 54,217 | 51,361 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 18.38 | 17.18 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mathis bearers went from 54,217 to 51,361 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 20 positions in the national ranking, going from #625 to #645.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mathis
FAQ
Mathis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mathis?
Name Census estimates that about 58,897 living Americans carry the surname Mathis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 5,820 residents.
How common is Mathis?
Mathis ranks #645 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 17.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 17 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 51,361 people with the surname Mathis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (58,897), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 17.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 17.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 17 of them to have the surname Mathis.
Has Mathis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mathis went from 54,217 recorded bearers to 51,361. That is a decrease of 2,856 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #625 to #645.
What does the Census say about the background of Mathis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mathis, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.6%. The next largest groups are Black (31.8%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Mathis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.6% (30,616 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mathis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (59.6%), Black (31.8%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Mathis (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 Mathis mean?
A patronymic surname derived from the given name Matthew, meaning "gift of Yahweh" in Hebrew. 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 Mathis (17.18 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 surname Mathis?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.