2000
#947
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 33,868
First available Census row
Per 100,000 12.55
Uncommon Last name
Riggs
Derived from the Old English word "hrycg," meaning a ridge or high ground, and likely referred to someone who lived near a ridge.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 37,678 Americans carry the last name Riggs. That puts it at #1,053 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 10.99 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 9,097 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Riggs 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 Riggs with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
38K
1 in 9,097
Census rank
#1,053
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
11.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
33K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 32,857 bearers of the surname Riggs in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 10.99 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1053rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Riggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Riggs
The surname Riggs has its origins in the northern English counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire, where it emerged as a locational name derived from the Old English word "hrycg," meaning "ridge." This suggests that the earliest bearers of the name likely hailed from a place situated on or near a prominent ridge.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "de Rigges," referring to a landowner in Yorkshire. Another early record dates back to 1202, when a William de Riggeby is mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name underwent various spellings, including Rigge, Rigg, Rigges, and Riggys, reflecting the inconsistencies in orthography during that period. These variations were often influenced by regional dialects and the personal preferences of scribes.
One notable historical figure bearing the Riggs surname was Edward Riggs (c. 1558-1636), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford from 1608 to 1609. In the United States, Elias Riggs (1810-1901) was a pioneering American missionary and linguist who made significant contributions to the study of Armenian, Bulgarian, and Turkish languages.
Another prominent individual was Sara Riggs (1838-1905), an American educator and women's rights activist who was instrumental in the establishment of the Milwaukee Female College, one of the first institutions of higher education for women in Wisconsin.
In the realm of sports, Bobby Riggs (1918-1995) was a renowned American tennis player who won several Grand Slam titles in the 1930s and 1940s. He is perhaps best known for his famous "Battle of the Sexes" match against Billie Jean King in 1973.
Lastly, Renee Riggs (1904-1969) was an American actress and singer who achieved success on Broadway and in Hollywood during the 1920s and 1930s, appearing in numerous musicals and films.
Throughout history, the Riggs surname has been associated with various places, including Riggs Hill in West Virginia, Riggs County in North Dakota, and Riggs Flat in California, all of which likely derived their names from early settlers bearing the Riggs surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Riggs
Among Census respondents with the surname Riggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Riggs 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 Riggs surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.4% · 27,731
- Black or African American6.1% · 1,996
- Two or more races4.3% · 1,408
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 1,040
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.5% · 486
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 196
Timeline
Historical Census data for Riggs
Riggs 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
#1,011
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 34,506
+638 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 11.70
Rank movement Down 64 places
2020
#1,053
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 32,857
-1,649 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 10.99
Rank movement Down 42 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #947 | 33,868 | 12.55 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,011 | 34,506 | 11.70 | +638 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 64 places |
| 2020 | #1,053 | 32,857 | 10.99 | -1,649 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 42 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 Riggs 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 | #1,011 | #1,053 | -4.2% |
| Count | 34,506 | 32,857 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 11.70 | 10.99 | -6.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Riggs bearers went from 34,506 to 32,857 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 42 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,011 to #1,053.
FAQ
Riggs surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Riggs?
Name Census estimates that about 37,678 living Americans carry the surname Riggs. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 9,097 residents.
How common is Riggs?
Riggs ranks #1,053 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 10.99 per 100,000 residents, which is about 11 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 32,857 people with the surname Riggs. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (37,678), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 10.99 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 10.99 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 11 of them to have the surname Riggs.
Has Riggs become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Riggs went from 34,506 recorded bearers to 32,857. That is a decrease of 1,649 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,011 to #1,053.
What does the Census say about the background of Riggs?
Among Census respondents with the surname Riggs, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (6.1%) 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 Riggs in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.4% (27,731 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Riggs appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.4%), Black (6.1%), 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 Riggs (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 Riggs mean?
Derived from the Old English word "hrycg," meaning a ridge or high ground, and likely referred to someone who lived near a ridge. 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 Riggs (10.99 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 Riggs?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.