Last Names

Surnames / B

Bowdoin

How common is the last name Bowdoin?

About this name

We do not yet have a written origin for Bowdoin, so here is what the census records show.

Surname origins are rarely settled, and we would rather say nothing than guess. The sources below are the best places to look, and our guide to how surnames began explains the usual types.

Names nearby in the census

#30,630

Bowdoin was the 30,630th most common surname in the 2010 US Census, with 761 people, about 0.2 in every 100,000.

Who carries it

  • White (non-Hispanic)92.1%
  • Hispanic or Latino3.0%
  • Black (non-Hispanic)3.3%
  • Asian or Pacific Islander<0.1%
  • Two or more races1.1%
  • American Indian or Alaska Native<0.1%

Check the sources

For a name you are serious about, compare the dictionaries: Reaney and Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames; Hanks, Dictionary of American Family Names.