2000
#2,482
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,328
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.94
Uncommon Last name
Salmon
A surname derived from the Old French word "saumon," meaning someone who sold or caught salmon fish.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 16,147 Americans carry the last name Salmon. That puts it at #2,497 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 21,227 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Salmon 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 Salmon with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
16K
1 in 21,227
Census rank
#2,497
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
14K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 14,081 bearers of the surname Salmon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2497th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Salmon, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.8%) and Hispanic (10.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Salmon
The surname Salmon originated in England and can be traced back to the late 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English word "salor," which means "sallow" or "dark complexion." This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a descriptive nickname for someone with a dark or olive-toned skin complexion.
In the early records, the name was often spelled as "Salemon" or "Saleman." One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1176, which mention a person named "Willelmus Salemon."
The Salmon name has been associated with various locations throughout England, including Salmon Brook in Buckinghamshire and Salmon's Cross in West Sussex. Additionally, there are references to places like "Salmundebi" in the Domesday Book of 1086, which may have influenced the surname's development.
One notable historical figure with the Salmon surname was John Salmon, a 17th-century English writer and antiquary born in 1675. He was known for his works on English antiquities and history, such as "The Antiquities of Surrey" and "The Lives of the English Bishops."
Another significant individual was Thomas Salmon, a 17th-century English cartographer and writer born in 1679. He published numerous works, including "A New Survey of England" and "A New Geographic and Historical Grammar."
In the 19th century, George Salmon (1819-1904) was a renowned Irish mathematician and theologian who served as the Provost of Trinity College, Dublin. He made significant contributions to the field of mathematics and was also known for his works on theology and church history.
William Salmon (1644-1713) was a notable English medical writer and physician who published several influential works on midwifery and obstetrics during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, including "The Compleat English Midwife" and "Ars Anatomica."
Thomas Salmon (1648-1706), a contemporary of William Salmon, was an English clergyman and writer who gained recognition for his historical works, such as "A Review of the History of the Royal Navy of England" and "The Present State of the Universities."
These are just a few examples of notable individuals with the Salmon surname throughout history, highlighting the name's long-standing presence and its association with various fields, including literature, cartography, mathematics, medicine, and theology.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Salmon
Among Census respondents with the surname Salmon, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.8%) and Hispanic (10.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Salmon 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 Salmon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.8% · 9,270
- Black or African American18.8% · 2,652
- Hispanic or Latino10.3% · 1,449
- Two or more races3.4% · 479
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 158
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 73
Timeline
Historical Census data for Salmon
Salmon 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
#2,486
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,511
+1,183 bearers (+8.9%)
Per 100,000 4.92
Rank movement Down 4 places
2020
#2,497
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,081
-430 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 4.71
Rank movement Down 11 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,482 | 13,328 | 4.94 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,486 | 14,511 | 4.92 | +1,183 bearers (+8.9%) | Down 4 places |
| 2020 | #2,497 | 14,081 | 4.71 | -430 bearers (-3.0%) | Down 11 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 Salmon 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 | #2,486 | #2,497 | -0.4% |
| Count | 14,511 | 14,081 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 4.92 | 4.71 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Salmon bearers went from 14,511 to 14,081 (-3.0% change). The surname moved down 11 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,486 to #2,497.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Salmon
FAQ
Salmon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Salmon?
Name Census estimates that about 16,147 living Americans carry the surname Salmon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 21,227 residents.
How common is Salmon?
Salmon ranks #2,497 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.71 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 14,081 people with the surname Salmon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (16,147), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.71 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Salmon.
Has Salmon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Salmon went from 14,511 recorded bearers to 14,081. That is a decrease of 430 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,486 to #2,497.
What does the Census say about the background of Salmon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Salmon, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.8%) and Hispanic (10.3%). 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 Salmon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.8% (9,270 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Salmon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.8%), Black (18.8%), Hispanic (10.3%). 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 Salmon (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 Salmon mean?
A surname derived from the Old French word "saumon," meaning someone who sold or caught salmon fish. 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 Salmon (4.71 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 Salmon?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.