2000
#718
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 43,430
First available Census row
Per 100,000 16.10
Uncommon Last name
Strong
An English occupational surname for a strong man or someone with exceptional physical strength.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 50,177 Americans carry the last name Strong. That puts it at #774 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 14.64 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 6,831 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Strong 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 Strong with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
50K
1 in 6,831
Census rank
#774
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
14.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
44K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 43,757 bearers of the surname Strong in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 14.64 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 774th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Strong, the largest self-reported group is White at 64.5%. The next largest groups are Black (25.0%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Strong
The surname Strong is an English name that dates back to the late 11th century. It is derived from the Old English word "strang," meaning strong, powerful, or vigorous. The name likely originated as a nickname for someone who possessed great physical strength or was known for their fortitude and resilience.
During the Middle Ages, surnames were often derived from physical characteristics, occupations, or place names. The use of the surname Strong can be found in various historical records, such as the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of land and property ownership commissioned by William the Conqueror after the Norman Conquest of England.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Strong is in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1194, where a person named William Strong is mentioned. Another early reference can be found in the Curia Regis Rolls of Northamptonshire from 1207, which lists a Hugo Strong.
The surname Strong has been associated with several notable figures throughout history. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname was Sir John Strong (c. 1360-1409), a prominent English soldier and landowner who served under King Richard II and King Henry IV. During the Wars of the Roses in the 15th century, Sir John Strong fought for the House of Lancaster.
Another notable bearer of the surname Strong was Edward Strong (1569-1645), an English clergyman and theologian who served as a chaplain to King James I and taught at the University of Cambridge. He is known for his work "The Doctrine of the Last Judgement," which was published in 1644.
In the 17th century, Nathaniel Strong (1601-1655) was an English Puritan minister who emigrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630. He became one of the founders of the town of Taunton, Massachusetts, and served as the first minister of the Taunton Church.
During the American Revolutionary War, John Strong (1738-1799) was a prominent Connecticut merchant and patriot who served as a member of the Continental Congress and as a judge on the Superior Court of Connecticut.
In more recent times, the surname Strong has been associated with individuals such as Sir Archibald Strong (1831-1904), a British naval officer and explorer who served in the Royal Navy and was involved in the exploration of the Arctic regions.
The surname Strong has been found in various spellings over the centuries, including Stronge, Strang, and Stron. It has also been linked to certain place names in England, such as Strongford and Strongville, which may have influenced the development of the surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Strong
Among Census respondents with the surname Strong, the largest self-reported group is White at 64.5%. The next largest groups are Black (25.0%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Strong 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 Strong surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White64.5% · 28,213
- Black or African American25.0% · 10,925
- Two or more races4.6% · 2,014
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 1,605
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 580
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 420
Timeline
Historical Census data for Strong
Strong 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
#760
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 45,432
+2,002 bearers (+4.6%)
Per 100,000 15.40
Rank movement Down 42 places
2020
#774
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 43,757
-1,675 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 14.64
Rank movement Down 14 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #718 | 43,430 | 16.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #760 | 45,432 | 15.40 | +2,002 bearers (+4.6%) | Down 42 places |
| 2020 | #774 | 43,757 | 14.64 | -1,675 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 14 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 Strong 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 | #760 | #774 | -1.8% |
| Count | 45,432 | 43,757 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 15.40 | 14.64 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Strong bearers went from 45,432 to 43,757 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 14 positions in the national ranking, going from #760 to #774.
FAQ
Strong surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Strong?
Name Census estimates that about 50,177 living Americans carry the surname Strong. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 6,831 residents.
How common is Strong?
Strong ranks #774 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 14.64 per 100,000 residents, which is about 15 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 43,757 people with the surname Strong. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (50,177), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 14.64 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 14.64 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 15 of them to have the surname Strong.
Has Strong become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Strong went from 45,432 recorded bearers to 43,757. That is a decrease of 1,675 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #760 to #774.
What does the Census say about the background of Strong?
Among Census respondents with the surname Strong, the largest self-reported group is White at 64.5%. The next largest groups are Black (25.0%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Strong in the 2020 Census, accounting for 64.5% (28,213 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Strong appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (64.5%), Black (25.0%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Strong (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 Strong mean?
An English occupational surname for a strong man or someone with exceptional physical strength. 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 Strong (14.64 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 Strong?
See how many people are called Strong on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.