2000
#632
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 48,823
First available Census row
Per 100,000 18.10
Uncommon Last name
Parrish
An English toponymic surname derived from the Old French word "pareisse," referring to someone who lived near a church.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 54,302 Americans carry the last name Parrish. That puts it at #706 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 15.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 6,312 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Parrish 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 Parrish with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
54K
1 in 6,312
Census rank
#706
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
15.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
47K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 47,354 bearers of the surname Parrish in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 15.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 706th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Parrish, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.7%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Parrish
The surname Parrish originated in England and is a locational name derived from the Old English words 'parroc' or 'pearroc', meaning a small enclosed area or park. It is believed to have first emerged in the counties of Hampshire and Dorset in southern England during the late medieval period.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Parrok' and 'Paroch'. Other early spellings include 'Parrock', 'Parroc', and 'Parrok'. These variations likely reflect the different regional dialects and pronunciations of the time.
In the 13th century, the name Parrish began to appear in various historical records, such as the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which mention a John de Parrok in Oxfordshire. The Pipe Rolls of 1195 also make reference to a Robert de Parrok in Gloucestershire.
Notable individuals who bore the surname Parrish include Sir John Parrish (1609-1675), an English diplomat and Member of Parliament during the reign of Charles II. Another prominent figure was Joseph Parrish (1779-1840), an American Quaker minister and abolitionist who worked tirelessly to end slavery in the United States.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Parrish was often associated with certain place names, such as Parrish's Farm in Hertfordshire and Parrish's Manor in Norfolk. These locations likely derived their names from early settlers or landowners with the surname Parrish.
Other noteworthy individuals with this surname include Walter Parrish (1841-1904), an American architect known for designing several notable buildings in New York City, and Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966), a renowned American painter and illustrator renowned for his distinctive and vibrant style.
Throughout its history, the surname Parrish has maintained a strong presence in various parts of England, particularly in the southern counties, as well as in the United States, where it was carried by early English settlers and immigrants.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Parrish
Among Census respondents with the surname Parrish, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.7%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Parrish 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 Parrish surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.2% · 36,569
- Black or African American13.7% · 6,478
- Two or more races4.2% · 1,997
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 1,491
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 527
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 292
Timeline
Historical Census data for Parrish
Parrish 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
#694
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 49,733
+910 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 16.86
Rank movement Down 62 places
2020
#706
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 47,354
-2,379 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 15.84
Rank movement Down 12 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #632 | 48,823 | 18.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #694 | 49,733 | 16.86 | +910 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 62 places |
| 2020 | #706 | 47,354 | 15.84 | -2,379 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 12 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 Parrish 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 | #694 | #706 | -1.7% |
| Count | 49,733 | 47,354 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 16.86 | 15.84 | -6.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Parrish bearers went from 49,733 to 47,354 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 12 positions in the national ranking, going from #694 to #706.
FAQ
Parrish surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Parrish?
Name Census estimates that about 54,302 living Americans carry the surname Parrish. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 6,312 residents.
How common is Parrish?
Parrish ranks #706 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 15.84 per 100,000 residents, which is about 16 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 47,354 people with the surname Parrish. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (54,302), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 15.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 15.84 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 16 of them to have the surname Parrish.
Has Parrish become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Parrish went from 49,733 recorded bearers to 47,354. That is a decrease of 2,379 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #694 to #706.
What does the Census say about the background of Parrish?
Among Census respondents with the surname Parrish, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.7%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Parrish in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.2% (36,569 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Parrish appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.2%), Black (13.7%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Parrish (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 Parrish mean?
An English toponymic surname derived from the Old French word "pareisse," referring to someone who lived near a church. 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 Parrish (15.84 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 common is the surname Parrish?
Want to know how many people are called Parrish? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.