How common is the surname Hicks?

158,320 people in the United States had the surname Hicks in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 1,950 Americans. It ranked 170th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Hicks?

John Richard Hicks, British economist (1904-1989), followed by Bill Hicks.

Where is the surname Hicks most common?

Wikidata records people named Hicks in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.

How do you pronounce Hicks?

Hicks is /hɪks/, one syllable.

Is the surname Hicks getting more or less common?

More common. 153,618 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 158,320 in 2010, up 3.1%.

The surname Hicks

A patronymic surname, carried by 158,320 people in the United States.

Pronounced /hɪks/ 1 syllable Soundex H200

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Hicks is more common than 99.9% of them.

Origin

From Hick + -s.

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

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 158,320 people named Hicks in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 1,950 Americans. That is up 3.1% since 2000, when the Census counted 153,618.

#170

rank among US surnames

158,320

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+3.1%

change since 2000 (was #155)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#161	Gordon	161,833	1,908
#162	Mendez	161,717	1,909
#163	Silva	161,633	1,910
#164	Shaw	160,400	1,925
#165	Snyder	160,262	1,927
#166	Mason	160,213	1,927
#167	Dixon	159,480	1,936

Who is named Hicks

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

67% of people named Hicks identified as white (not Hispanic), 27% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.2% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 67%
Black (not Hispanic) 27%
Two or more races 2.2%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.1%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1.0%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Hickss

42 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

John Richard Hicks
British economist (1904-1989)
Bill Hicks
American comedian (1961–1994)
Catherine Hicks
American retired actress (born 1951)
Adam Hicks
American actor, rapper, singer, and songwriter, born 1992
Thomas Hicks
American track and field athlete, 1876–1952
Taylor Hicks
American musician, born 1976
Hope Hicks
American public relations executive and political advisor (born 1988)
Edward Hicks
American artist (1780-1849)
Scott Hicks
British-born Australian film director, born 1953
Tom Hicks
American private equity investor (1946–2025)
Russell Hicks
American actor (1895-1957)
Dan Hicks
American actor (1951–2020)

Notable Hickss come mostly from the United States (34), the United Kingdom (4) and Australia (4).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Higgs

Surnames that sound like Hicks

Hicks has the Soundex code H200, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code H200.

Questions

Where does the surname Hicks come from?: From Hick + -s.
How common is the surname Hicks?: 158,320 people in the United States had the surname Hicks in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 1,950 Americans. It ranked 170th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Hicks?: In the 2010 Census, 67% of people named Hicks identified as white (not Hispanic), and 27% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Hicks?: John Richard Hicks, British economist (1904-1989), followed by Bill Hicks.
Where is the surname Hicks most common?: Wikidata records people named Hicks in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.
How do you pronounce Hicks?: Hicks is /hɪks/, one syllable.
What type of surname is Hicks?: Hicks is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Hicks getting more or less common?: More common. 153,618 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 158,320 in 2010, up 3.1%.
What are other spellings of Hicks?: Higgs.