2000
#1,846
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,901
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.64
Uncommon Last name
Spicer
An occupational surname referring to a seller or producer of spices.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 20,276 Americans carry the last name Spicer. That puts it at #1,993 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 16,904 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spicer 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 Spicer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
20K
1 in 16,904
Census rank
#1,993
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
18K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 17,682 bearers of the surname Spicer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1993rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spicer, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.3%. The next largest groups are Black (12.1%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spicer
The surname Spicer has its origins in England, tracing back to the early 13th century. It is an occupational name derived from the Old French word "espicier" or the Anglo-Norman word "spicer," meaning a dealer in spices or a grocer. In medieval times, spices were highly valuable commodities, and those involved in their trade held respectable positions within communities.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1273, where a person named William le Spicer is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use during that period. Additionally, the Spicer surname appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, further solidifying its presence in England during the Middle Ages.
The Spicer name has also been linked to various place names, such as Spicer Street in Birmingham and Spicer's Meadow in Gloucestershire. These locations may have been named after individuals bearing the Spicer surname or may have been areas where Spicers resided or conducted their trade.
Notable individuals with the Spicer surname throughout history include:
1. Henry Spicer (1555-1627), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford University.
2. John Spicer (1610-1661), an English Puritan minister and author, known for his work "A Treatise of Tithes" published in 1647.
3. Tobias Spicer (1618-1684), an English Puritan divine and ejected minister who was forced to resign from his position after the Act of Uniformity in 1662.
4. William Spicer (1821-1905), a British architect and artist who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Royal Court Theatre.
5. Ernest Evan Spicer (1876-1952), a British industrialist and engineer who founded the Spicer manufacturing company, known for producing components for the automotive industry.
While the Spicer surname has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including North America, Australia, and New Zealand, carried by individuals migrating from the British Isles. The name continues to be found in various regions, reflecting its historical significance as an occupational surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spicer
Among Census respondents with the surname Spicer, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.3%. The next largest groups are Black (12.1%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Spicer 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 Spicer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.3% · 14,013
- Black or African American12.1% · 2,136
- Two or more races4.4% · 786
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 528
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 110
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 109
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spicer
Spicer 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
#1,951
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,501
+600 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 6.27
Rank movement Down 105 places
2020
#1,993
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,682
-819 bearers (-4.4%)
Per 100,000 5.92
Rank movement Down 42 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,846 | 17,901 | 6.64 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,951 | 18,501 | 6.27 | +600 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 105 places |
| 2020 | #1,993 | 17,682 | 5.92 | -819 bearers (-4.4%) | 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 Spicer 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 | #1,951 | #1,993 | -2.2% |
| Count | 18,501 | 17,682 | -4.4% |
| Per 100K | 6.27 | 5.92 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spicer bearers went from 18,501 to 17,682 (-4.4% change). The surname moved down 42 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,951 to #1,993.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Spicer
FAQ
Spicer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spicer?
Name Census estimates that about 20,276 living Americans carry the surname Spicer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 16,904 residents.
How common is Spicer?
Spicer ranks #1,993 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.92 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 17,682 people with the surname Spicer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (20,276), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.92 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Spicer.
Has Spicer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spicer went from 18,501 recorded bearers to 17,682. That is a decrease of 819 (-4.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,951 to #1,993.
What does the Census say about the background of Spicer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spicer, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.3%. The next largest groups are Black (12.1%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Spicer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.3% (14,013 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spicer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.3%), Black (12.1%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Spicer (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 Spicer mean?
An occupational surname referring to a seller or producer of spices. 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 Spicer (5.92 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 Spicer?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.