# Hunter (surname)

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

An English and Scottish surname originating as an occupation for a hunter.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | occupational, named after the work an ancestor did |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 162,440 |
| US rank (2010) | 160 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 1,901 people |
| Change since 2000 | +5.2% (154,410 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈhʌntɚ/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From hunter.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Hunter 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) | 61% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 33% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.5% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.0% |
| Two or more races | 2.6% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Hunter in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of Great Britain.

## People named Hunter

- Holly Hunter, American actress (born 1958)
- Kim Hunter, American actress (1922-2002)
- Neilia Hunter, American teacher and first wife of Joe Biden (1942–1972)
- Tab Hunter, American actor and singer (1931–2018)
- Jeffrey Hunter, American actor and producer (1926–1969)
- Duncan L. Hunter, American politician
- Nicki Hunter, American pornographic actress and director
- Francis Hunter, American tennis player (1894–1981)
- Lindsey Hunter, American basketball player and coach
- William Hunter, British anatomist and physician (1718-1783)
- De'Andre Hunter, American basketball player
- Alberta Hunter, American blues singer, songwriter, and nurse (1895-1984)

and 57 more on Wikidata.

## Similar surnames

Henderson, Hendricks, Hendrix, Hendrickson, Hendrick, Hendershot, Hendry, Hendren, Henthorn, Hinderliter, Hendershott, Hendrixson.

## 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.