How common is the surname Adam?

13,574 people in the United States had the surname Adam in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 22,745 Americans. It ranked 2,654th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Adam?

Gordon Adam, American rower (1915–1992), followed by Omer Adam.

Where is the surname Adam most common?

Wikidata records people named Adam in the United States, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Israel and 3 other countries.

How do you pronounce Adam?

Adam is /ˈædəm/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Adam getting more or less common?

More common. 12,209 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 13,574 in 2010, up 11%.

Is Adam also a first name?

Yes. Adam is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Adam

A Latin patronymic surname, carried by 13,574 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈædəm/ 2 syllables Soundex A350 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Adam is more common than 98.4% of them.

Origin

Latin origin

From Middle English Adam, from Old English Adam, from Latin Adam, Adamus, from Ancient Greek Ἀδάμ (Adám), Ἄδαμος (Ádamos), from Biblical Hebrew אָדָם (adam, “earth, man, soil, light brown”), from אדמה (adamah, “red earth, ground”).

Adam is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

One of 91 Latin surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 13,574 people named Adam in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 22,745 Americans. That is up 11% since 2000, when the Census counted 12,209.

#2,654

rank among US surnames

13,574

people in 2010

4.6

per 100,000 Americans

+11.2%

change since 2000 (was #2,704)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#2,645	McCartney	13,615	22,677
#2,646	Tierney	13,608	22,689
#2,648	Braden	13,603	22,697
#2,650	Crouse	13,598	22,705
#2,651	Dowd	13,590	22,719
#2,652	Suggs	13,585	22,727
#2,653	Pickering	13,582	22,732

Who is named Adam

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

73% of people named Adam identified as white (not Hispanic), 17% as Black (not Hispanic) and 4.5% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 73%
Black (not Hispanic) 17%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 4.5%
Asian and Pacific Islander 3.5%
Two or more races 1.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Adams

9 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Gordon Adam
American rower (1915–1992)
Omer Adam
American-Israeli singer, born 1993
Margie Adam
American pop musician, born 1947
Frederick Adam
British Army general (1781 or 1784-1781)
John Adam
British colonial governor of India (1779-1825)
Ronald Forbes Adam
British Army general (1885–1982)
Abdulfattah Adam
Association football player, born 1995
William Adam
Belgian malacologist (1909–1988)
William Adam
British advocate, barrister, politician and judge (1751-1839)

Notable Adams come mostly from the United States (2), the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (2) and Israel (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Adams

Surnames that sound like Adam

Adam has the Soundex code A350, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code A350.

Other Latin surnames

All 91 Latin surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Adam come from?: From Middle English Adam, from Old English Adam, from Latin Adam, Adamus, from Ancient Greek Ἀδάμ (Adám), Ἄδαμος (Ádamos), from Biblical Hebrew אָדָם (adam, “earth, man, soil, light brown”), from אדמה (adamah, “red earth, ground”).
How common is the surname Adam?: 13,574 people in the United States had the surname Adam in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 22,745 Americans. It ranked 2,654th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Adam?: In the 2010 Census, 73% of people named Adam identified as white (not Hispanic), and 17% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Adam?: Gordon Adam, American rower (1915–1992), followed by Omer Adam.
Where is the surname Adam most common?: Wikidata records people named Adam in the United States, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Israel and 3 other countries.
How do you pronounce Adam?: Adam is /ˈædəm/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Adam?: Adam is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Adam getting more or less common?: More common. 12,209 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 13,574 in 2010, up 11%.
What are other spellings of Adam?: Adams.
Is Adam also a first name?: Yes. Adam is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.