How common is the surname Owens?

182,719 people in the United States had the surname Owens in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 1,690 Americans. It ranked 140th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Owens?

Jesse Owens, American track and field athlete (1913–1980), followed by Candace Owens.

Where is the surname Owens most common?

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

Is the surname Owens getting more or less common?

More common. 176,334 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 182,719 in 2010, up 3.6%.

Is Owens also a first name?

Yes. Owens 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 Owens

A patronymic surname, carried by 182,719 people in the United States.

2 syllables Soundex O520

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

Origin

From Owen + -s (patronymic suffix).

Owens 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 182,719 people named Owens in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 1,690 Americans. That is up 3.6% since 2000, when the Census counted 176,334.

#140

rank among US surnames

182,719

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+3.6%

change since 2000 (was #126)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#131	Ellis	188,968	1,634
#132	Tran	188,498	1,638
#133	Medina	188,497	1,638
#134	Aguilar	186,512	1,655
#135	Stevens	185,674	1,663
#136	Murray	184,910	1,670
#137	Ford	184,832	1,670

Who is named Owens

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

66% of people named Owens identified as white (not Hispanic), 28% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.5% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 66%
Black (not Hispanic) 28%
Two or more races 2.5%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.8%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Owenss

33 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Jesse Owens
American track and field athlete (1913–1980)
Candace Owens
American political commentator (born 1989)
Buck Owens
American country singer-songwriter (1929-2006)
Terrell Owens
American football player (born 1973)
Delia Owens
American author and zoologist, born 1949
Ryan Owens
British cyclist, born 1995
Billy Owens
American basketball player (born 1969)
Rick Owens
American fashion designer (born 1962)
Burgess Owens
American politician and former football player (born 1951)
Gary Owens
American radio announcer, 1934–2015
Bill Owens
American politician, born 1950
Geoffrey Owens
American actor, born 1961

Notable Owenss come mostly from the United States (31), the United Kingdom (1) and Australia (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Owings

Surnames that sound like Owens

Owings

Owens has the Soundex code O520, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code O520.

Questions

Where does the surname Owens come from?: From Owen + -s (patronymic suffix).
How common is the surname Owens?: 182,719 people in the United States had the surname Owens in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 1,690 Americans. It ranked 140th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Owens?: In the 2010 Census, 66% of people named Owens identified as white (not Hispanic), and 28% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Owens?: Jesse Owens, American track and field athlete (1913–1980), followed by Candace Owens.
Where is the surname Owens most common?: Wikidata records people named Owens in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.
What type of surname is Owens?: Owens is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Owens getting more or less common?: More common. 176,334 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 182,719 in 2010, up 3.6%.
What are other spellings of Owens?: Owings.
Is Owens also a first name?: Yes. Owens 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.