2000
#273
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100,491
First available Census row
Per 100,000 37.25
Common Last name
Newman
An occupational surname referring to a newcomer or stranger to a settlement.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 111,426 Americans carry the last name Newman. That puts it at #323 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 32.51 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,076 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Newman 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 Newman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
111K
1 in 3,076
Census rank
#323
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
32.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
97K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 97,169 bearers of the surname Newman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 32.51 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 323rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Newman, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Newman
The surname Newman is an English occupational name that originates from the Old English words "niwe" meaning new, and "mann" meaning man or person. It was originally used to refer to someone who was new to a particular area or town, such as a newcomer or a settler.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the late 12th century in various English counties, including Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, and Sussex. Some of the earliest known bearers of the name include William le Neweman, recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1194, and Richard le Niweman, found in the Curia Regis Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1203.
The name appears in several historical records, such as the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where it is spelled as "Neuman" and "Niweman". It is also found in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296, where it is recorded as "Neuman" and "Niweman".
In the 14th century, the name began to be associated with specific places, such as Newnham in Hertfordshire and Newham in Essex. This led to variations in spelling, including "Newnham" and "Newnam".
One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname was John Newman (c. 1492 - c. 1559), an English Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake during the Marian Persecutions under the reign of Queen Mary I.
Other prominent figures with the surname include Samuel Newman (1602 - 1663), an English Puritan minister and author who was one of the founders of the New England colony of Massachusetts; John Henry Newman (1801 - 1890), an influential English theologian and cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church; and Alfred Newman (1901 - 1970), an American composer and conductor who won nine Academy Awards for his film scores.
In the 19th century, the surname Newman became more widespread in England, with notable bearers including Francis William Newman (1805 - 1897), a English scholar and writer, and John Broadhurst Newman (1827 - 1890), an English architect responsible for several iconic buildings in Birmingham.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Newman
Among Census respondents with the surname Newman, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Newman 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 Newman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.9% · 77,647
- Black or African American11.0% · 10,655
- Two or more races4.0% · 3,885
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 3,586
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 766
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 630
Timeline
Historical Census data for Newman
Newman 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
#307
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101,931
+1,440 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 34.56
Rank movement Down 34 places
2020
#323
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 97,169
-4,762 bearers (-4.7%)
Per 100,000 32.51
Rank movement Down 16 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #273 | 100,491 | 37.25 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #307 | 101,931 | 34.56 | +1,440 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 34 places |
| 2020 | #323 | 97,169 | 32.51 | -4,762 bearers (-4.7%) | Down 16 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 Newman 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 | #307 | #323 | -5.2% |
| Count | 101,931 | 97,169 | -4.7% |
| Per 100K | 34.56 | 32.51 | -5.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Newman bearers went from 101,931 to 97,169 (-4.7% change). The surname moved down 16 positions in the national ranking, going from #307 to #323.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Newman
FAQ
Newman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Newman?
Name Census estimates that about 111,426 living Americans carry the surname Newman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,076 residents.
How common is Newman?
Newman ranks #323 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 32.51 per 100,000 residents, which is about 33 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 97,169 people with the surname Newman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (111,426), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 32.51 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 32.51 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 33 of them to have the surname Newman.
Has Newman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Newman went from 101,931 recorded bearers to 97,169. That is a decrease of 4,762 (-4.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #307 to #323.
What does the Census say about the background of Newman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Newman, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Newman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.9% (77,647 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Newman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.9%), Black (11.0%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Newman (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 Newman mean?
An occupational surname referring to a newcomer or stranger to a settlement. 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 Newman (32.51 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 Newman?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.