2000
#52,174
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 374
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.14
Very Rare Last name
Pas
A diminutive of the Greek word meaning to suffer or undergo.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 433 Americans carry the last name Pas. That puts it at #58,068 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 791,580 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pas 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.
Bearers in the US
433
1 in 791,580
Census rank
#58,068
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
378
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 378 bearers of the surname Pas in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 58068th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pas, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (28.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pas
The surname "PAS" has its origins in France, dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the French word "pas," which means "step" or "stride." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who walked with a distinctive gait or who worked as a messenger or courier.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the archives of the Benedictine monastery of Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, near Paris, from the year 1187. The document mentions a certain "Radulfus de Pas," suggesting that the name may have originated as a locative surname, referring to a specific place or region.
In the 13th century, the name appears in various records across northern France, particularly in the regions of Normandy and Picardy. One notable example is that of Jean du Pas, a French nobleman who fought alongside King Philip IV during the Flemish uprisings of the late 13th century.
During the Middle Ages, the name "PAS" was sometimes spelled as "PASSE" or "PASSI," reflecting the linguistic variations common at the time. These alternative spellings can be found in medieval manuscripts and charters from various regions of France.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Hugues du Pas, a renowned theologian and philosopher who lived in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. He was born in the town of Pas-en-Artois, which may have contributed to the name's geographic association.
In the 15th century, the name appears in the records of the city of Rouen, where a certain Guillaume Pas was a prominent merchant and landowner. His descendants continued to hold influential positions in the city's trade guilds for several generations.
Another notable figure with the surname "PAS" was Jean-Baptiste du Pas, a French painter and engraver who lived in the 17th century. He was born in Paris in 1638 and is best known for his religious paintings and portraits of the French nobility.
During the 18th century, the name "PAS" gained prominence in the military circles of France. One such figure was Pierre-Alexandre Pas de Beaulieu, a French general who fought in the Napoleonic Wars. He was born in 1769 and played a crucial role in several major battles, including the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.
Another notable bearer of the name was Jacques-Louis Pas, a French explorer and geographer who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was born in Toulouse in 1771 and is best known for his extensive explorations of the African continent and his detailed maps of the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pas
Among Census respondents with the surname Pas, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (28.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Pas 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 Pas surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.6% · 248
- Hispanic or Latino28.6% · 108
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 11
- Black or African American1.6% · 6
- Two or more races1.3% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pas
Pas 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
#47,878
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 442
+68 bearers (+18.2%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Up 4,296 places
2020
#58,068
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 378
-64 bearers (-14.5%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Down 10,190 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #52,174 | 374 | 0.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #47,878 | 442 | 0.15 | +68 bearers (+18.2%) | Up 4,296 places |
| 2020 | #58,068 | 378 | 0.13 | -64 bearers (-14.5%) | Down 10,190 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 Pas 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 | #47,878 | #58,068 | -21.3% |
| Count | 442 | 378 | -14.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.15 | 0.13 | -15.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pas bearers went from 442 to 378 (-14.5% change). The surname moved down 10,190 positions in the national ranking, going from #47,878 to #58,068.
FAQ
Pas surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pas?
Name Census estimates that about 433 living Americans carry the surname Pas. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 791,580 residents.
How common is Pas?
Pas ranks #58,068 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 378 people with the surname Pas. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (433), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.13 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.13 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Pas.
Has Pas become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pas went from 442 recorded bearers to 378. That is a decrease of 64 (-14.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #47,878 to #58,068.
What does the Census say about the background of Pas?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pas, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (28.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%). 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 Pas in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.6% (248 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pas appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.6%), Hispanic (28.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%). 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 Pas (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 Pas mean?
A diminutive of the Greek word meaning to suffer or undergo. 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 Pas (0.13 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 Pas?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.