How Many People Are Named Thomas Jefferson?

There are approximately 278 people named Thomas Jefferson living in the United States today. That makes this name combination uncommon, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 1,232,929 Americans.

This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Thomas with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Jefferson. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census background data where it is available.

Estimated People with This Name

278

1 in 1,232,929 Americans

Combination Rarity

Uncommon

Very Rare Very Common

First Name

View full profile

Thomas

Est. Living 1,548,322

Last Name

Jefferson

Thomas: Popularity Over Time

Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Thomas. The peak year was 1952 with 48,728 births. The average person named Thomas today is 55 years old.

Male

Female

Ancestry of the First Name Thomas

In the 2020 Census, the first name Thomas was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (86.99%). The next largest recorded groups were Black (4.65%) and Hispanic (3.88%).

These percentages describe the people who had the first name Thomas in the 2020 Census. They do not tell you the deeper origin or meaning of the name itself.

Read this as a snapshot of who already had the name in 2020, not as a trend line. The SSA chart above is still the better way to see how Thomas rose or fell over time.

White

86.99%

Black

4.65%

Hispanic

3.88%

Asian/Pacific Islander

1.65%

American Indian/Alaska Native

0.48%

Two or More Races

2.34%

Ancestry of the Jefferson Surname

The surname Jefferson was most commonly recorded among people who identified as Black in the 2020 Census.

This is a self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people who had the surname Jefferson in the published Census surname tables. It gives useful context around who was recorded with the name, but it does not tell the full family history of every Boone line.

White

16.92%

Black

71.56%

Hispanic

3.62%

Asian/Pacific Islander

0.50%

American Indian/Alaska Native

1.68%

Two or More Races

5.72%

How we calculated this

The first name "Thomas" has an estimated frequency of 0.452% among living Americans, based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024 adjusted for mortality using CDC 2023 life tables.

The surname "Jefferson" appears at a rate of 17.95 per 100,000 people in the 2020 U.S. Census.

We do not use the Census first-name snapshot for the main estimate because it is only published once every 10 years. The latest public first-name Census file is from 2020, which is already 6 years old. SSA birth records plus CDC survival data give a better current estimate of how many people with the first name Thomas are likely to be alive now.

Multiplying these frequencies against the U.S. population of ~343 million gives 278 estimated people. This assumes first names and last names are statistically independent. Full methodology.

Other people named Thomas

Thomas Smith Thomas Johnson Thomas Williams Thomas Brown Thomas Jones Thomas Garcia Thomas Miller Thomas Rodriguez

Other people with the surname Jefferson

Michael Jefferson James Jefferson John Jefferson David Jefferson Robert Jefferson William Jefferson Richard Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson: Questions and Answers

How many people are named Thomas Jefferson?

We estimate approximately 278 people named Thomas Jefferson are alive in the United States today. The first name Thomas is shared by 1,548,322 Americans, and the surname Jefferson is shared by 61,517.

How rare is the name Thomas Jefferson?

This name combination is classified as Uncommon, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 1,232,929 Americans. The first name Thomas is very common and the surname Jefferson is uncommon.

Is Thomas a male or female name?

Thomas is predominantly male, with 99.6% of bearers being male and 0.4% female. It peaked in popularity in 1952 and the average bearer today is 55 years old.

What does the Census say about the first name Thomas?

In the 2020 Census, the first name Thomas was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (86.99%). The next largest recorded groups were Black (4.65%) and Hispanic (3.88%). These percentages describe the people who had the name in the 2020 Census, not the deeper origin of the name itself.

Where does this data come from?

First name data comes from the Social Security Administration (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables. When available, first-name Census background data comes from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau first-name tables. Surname data comes from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau. Full methodology.

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