# Waters (surname)

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

A surname originating as a patronymic.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | patronymic, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 67,929 |
| US rank (2010) | 491 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 4,545 people |
| Change since 2000 | +3.2% (65,817 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈwɔtɚz/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From the given name Walter + the patronymic suffix -s.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Waters 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) | 73% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 21% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.6% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.8% |
| Two or more races | 2.1% |

## Where

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

## People named Waters

- John Waters, American filmmaker, actor, comedian and writer (born 1946)
- Ethel Waters, American blues, jazz and gospel vocalist and actress (1896-1977)
- Crystal Waters, American singer-songwriter
- Mark Waters, American film director
- Alice Waters, American chef, activist, and author
- John Waters, Australian actor
- Anthony Waters, Australian field hockey player
- Dominic Waters, American basketball player (born 1986)
- Lindy Waters III, American basketball player (born 1997)
- John Waters, American film director (1893-1965)
- Hydie Waters, American pornographic actress
- Harry Waters, Jr., American actor

and 5 more on Wikidata.

## Similar surnames

Waiters, Watters, Watrous, Wauters, Weathers, Withers, Weathersby, Waterhouse, Watterson, Witherspoon, Whitehurst, Weatherspoon.

## 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.