How common is the surname Edgar?

11,895 people in the United States had the surname Edgar in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 25,956 Americans. It ranked 3,014th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Edgar?

Daisy Edgar-Jones, British actress (born 1998), followed by Frankie Edgar.

Where is the surname Edgar most common?

Wikidata records people named Edgar in the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil.

How do you pronounce Edgar?

Edgar is /ˈɛdɡɚ/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Edgar getting more or less common?

More common. 11,607 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 11,895 in 2010, up 2.5%.

Is Edgar also a first name?

Yes. Edgar 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 Edgar

An English patronymic surname, carried by 11,895 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈɛdɡɚ/ 2 syllables Soundex E326 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). Edgar is more common than 98.1% of them.

Origin

English origin

From Old English Ēadgār, the name of early English kings, from Old English ēad (“rich”) + gār (“spear”). Compare Icelandic Auðgeir. Hairstyle named after Major League Baseball player Edgar Martínez.

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

One of 1,446 English surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 11,895 people named Edgar in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 25,956 Americans. That is up 2.5% since 2000, when the Census counted 11,607.

#3,014

rank among US surnames

11,895

people in 2010

4.0

per 100,000 Americans

+2.5%

change since 2000 (was #2,833)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#3,010	Cotter	11,904	25,936
#3,011	New	11,903	25,938
#3,012	Fontaine	11,901	25,943
#3,014	Edgar	11,895	25,956

Who is named Edgar

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

87% of people named Edgar identified as white (not Hispanic), 4.8% as Black (not Hispanic) and 4.1% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 87%
Black (not Hispanic) 4.8%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 4.1%
Two or more races 1.9%
Asian and Pacific Islander 1.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Edgars

7 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Daisy Edgar-Jones
British actress (born 1998)
Frankie Edgar
American mixed martial artist (born 1981)
Jim Edgar
American politician (1946–2025)
David Edgar
American swimmer, born 1950
Tyrone Edgar
British athletics competitor, born 1982
Robert W. Edgar
American politician (1943–2013)
Bruno Ramires
Brazilian footballer, born 1994

Notable Edgars come mostly from the United States (4), the United Kingdom (2) and Brazil (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Eagar

Surnames that sound like Edgar

Edgar has the Soundex code E326, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code E326.

Other English surnames

All 1,446 English surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Edgar come from?: From Old English Ēadgār, the name of early English kings, from Old English ēad (“rich”) + gār (“spear”). Compare Icelandic Auðgeir. Hairstyle named after Major League Baseball player Edgar Martínez.
How common is the surname Edgar?: 11,895 people in the United States had the surname Edgar in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 25,956 Americans. It ranked 3,014th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Edgar?: In the 2010 Census, 87% of people named Edgar identified as white (not Hispanic), and 4.8% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Edgar?: Daisy Edgar-Jones, British actress (born 1998), followed by Frankie Edgar.
Where is the surname Edgar most common?: Wikidata records people named Edgar in the United States, the United Kingdom and Brazil.
How do you pronounce Edgar?: Edgar is /ˈɛdɡɚ/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Edgar?: Edgar is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Edgar getting more or less common?: More common. 11,607 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 11,895 in 2010, up 2.5%.
What are other spellings of Edgar?: Eagar.
Is Edgar also a first name?: Yes. Edgar 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.