# Bowles (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/bowles/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 23,713 |
| US rank (2010) | 1,514 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 13,020 people |
| Change since 2000 | +2.4% (23,157 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

Variant of Bowell with post-medieval excrescent -s.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Bowles in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 81% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 14% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.6% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.5% |
| Two or more races | 2.2% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Bowles in the United States.

## People named Bowles

- Paul Bowles, American composer and writer (1910–1999)
- Jane Bowles, American novelist, playwright (1917–1973)
- Chester Bowles, American politician (1901–1986)
- Samuel Bowles, American economist
- Lauren Bowles, American actress
- Gary Ray Bowles, American serial killer (1962–2019)
- Erskine Bowles, American politician and businessman
- Brian Bowles, American martial artist
- Todd Bowles, American football player and coach

## Similar surnames

Boles, Bales, Boyles, Biles, Bolles, Blose, Boulos, Black, Blake, Bullock, Block, Bliss.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.