2000
#336
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 83,437
First available Census row
Per 100,000 30.93
Uncommon Last name
Terry
Derived from the French place name Thierry, meaning "ruler of the people."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 95,644 Americans carry the last name Terry. That puts it at #372 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 27.90 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,584 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Terry 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 Terry with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
96K
1 in 3,584
Census rank
#372
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
27.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
83K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 83,406 bearers of the surname Terry in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 27.90 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 372nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Terry, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.4%. The next largest groups are Black (26.8%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Terry
The surname Terry originated in medieval England, deriving from an Old French word "terrier" which referred to someone who worked on land or cultivated the soil. It is believed to have emerged around the 12th century in the regions of Normandy and Brittany in France.
Terry is thought to be an occupational surname, initially given to individuals who worked as farmers, land workers, or held positions related to the management of estates or land holdings. The name's earliest known recording dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Terrie" and "Terricus".
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Terry surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1190, which mentions a "Radulphus Terri". Another early record is from the Curia Regis Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1207, listing a "Willelmus Teri".
The surname Terry has undergone various spelling variations over the centuries, including Terrey, Terri, Tery, Torry, and Torrey. These variations often reflected regional dialects and local pronunciations.
Notable historical figures with the surname Terry include:
1. Edward Terry (1590-1668), an English traveler and writer who published a travelogue about his journey to India in the 17th century.
2. Samuel Terry (1779-1838), an English inventor and manufacturer who pioneered the development of the first successful crimping machine for textiles.
3. Alfred Howe Terry (1827-1890), an American soldier who served as a Union general during the American Civil War and later played a role in the Great Sioux War of 1876-1877.
4. Milton Spenser Terry (1840-1914), an American Methodist theologian and author who wrote extensively on biblical hermeneutics and Christian doctrine.
5. Ellen Terry (1847-1928), a renowned English stage actress who became one of the leading Shakespearean performers of her time.
The Terry surname has been associated with various place names in England, such as Terry's Green in Suffolk, Terry's Hill in Staffordshire, and Terry's Leys in Worcestershire, indicating its longstanding presence in different regions of the country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Terry
Among Census respondents with the surname Terry, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.4%. The next largest groups are Black (26.8%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Terry 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 Terry surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.4% · 52,890
- Black or African American26.8% · 22,386
- Two or more races4.7% · 3,910
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 3,108
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 570
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 542
Timeline
Historical Census data for Terry
Terry 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
#361
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 87,000
+3,563 bearers (+4.3%)
Per 100,000 29.49
Rank movement Down 25 places
2020
#372
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 83,406
-3,594 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 27.90
Rank movement Down 11 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #336 | 83,437 | 30.93 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #361 | 87,000 | 29.49 | +3,563 bearers (+4.3%) | Down 25 places |
| 2020 | #372 | 83,406 | 27.90 | -3,594 bearers (-4.1%) | 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 Terry 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 | #361 | #372 | -3.0% |
| Count | 87,000 | 83,406 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 29.49 | 27.90 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Terry bearers went from 87,000 to 83,406 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 11 positions in the national ranking, going from #361 to #372.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Terry
FAQ
Terry surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Terry?
Name Census estimates that about 95,644 living Americans carry the surname Terry. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,584 residents.
How common is Terry?
Terry ranks #372 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 27.90 per 100,000 residents, which is about 28 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 83,406 people with the surname Terry. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (95,644), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 27.9 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 27.90 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 28 of them to have the surname Terry.
Has Terry become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Terry went from 87,000 recorded bearers to 83,406. That is a decrease of 3,594 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #361 to #372.
What does the Census say about the background of Terry?
Among Census respondents with the surname Terry, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.4%. The next largest groups are Black (26.8%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Terry in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.4% (52,890 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Terry appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (63.4%), Black (26.8%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Terry (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 Terry mean?
Derived from the French place name Thierry, meaning "ruler of the people." 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 Terry (27.90 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 Terry?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.