The Ames surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 22,385 people carried this name — #1,598 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 13,200 people counted. That is up 2% from 21,855 in 2000.

Look up another surname

Share

What the name means

The meaning of the Ames surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a baptismal name, from a given name: ‘the son of Amys’.

An early record he cites: William fil. Amye, Lincolnshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls. Fil. is Latin for “son of”.

His entry covers Ames, Amies, Amis, Amiss and Aymes.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 51 · public domain.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 108 people named Ames live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Córdoba.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Córdoba 43
City of Buenos Aires 31
Buenos Aires Province 21
Misiones 13

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

156 families named Ames, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 878 people lived in those households, 5.6 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 2 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

Massachusetts 51
New Hampshire 30
Maine 20
New York 19
Vermont 18
Connecticut 16
Pennsylvania 1
North Carolina 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 227 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Ames in American newspapers,
1887–1908.

Newspaper page from The Warner Sun carrying the name Ames
The Warner Sun 1887-05-13
Newspaper page from The Guthrie Daily Leader carrying the name Ames
The Guthrie Daily Leader 1908-08-03
Newspaper page from The Delaware Ledger carrying the name Ames
The Delaware Ledger 1887-06-11

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 17,216 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Ames in Australian newspapers,
1820s–1990s.

20,063 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Ames. The most, 3,847, date from the 1930s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Victoria, at 1.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 5,797
Victoria 5,534
Queensland 3,259
South Australia 2,633
Western Australia 1,854
Tasmania 829
ACT (Canberra) 47
Northern Territory 8

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Ames.

Who carried it

People named Ames,
with a public archive behind them.

  • William Ames
    William Ames 1576–1633 · parson
  • William Ames
    William Ames 1576–1633 · parson
  • Joseph Ames
    Joseph Ames 1689–1759 · historian
  • Joseph Ames
    Joseph Ames 1689–1759 · historian
  • William Ames d. 1662 · writer
  • Brian Ames d. 2018 · politician

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Ames,
in the records of 9 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States2,226 records

2,226 records of the Ames name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 767
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 495
  • Other U.S. records 964
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Alexander Audrey Ames

    Born 1946; from New York, New York. U.S. Army, food service specialist; died in service 1968 in Quang Ngai, South Vietnam. Buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Edward A. Ames

    Born 1920 in Massachusetts. Enlisted 1943 at Boston; electrical plant worker from Suffolk County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2001, buried at Fox Hill Cemetery, Billerica, Massachusetts.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Mary Ames

    Arrived at New York in 1865 aboard the Atmosphere from Liverpool, aged 30; servant. From Ireland; bound for Michigan.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 2,226 records for Ames in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Netherlands269 records

269 records of the Ames name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 149
  • Dutch population registers 89
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 31
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Johanna Margrietha Ames

    Married in 1899 in Echteld; domestic servant. Died 1959 in Arnhem, aged 80.

    Open Archives, Gelders Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Johan Jurg Ames

    Married in 1908 in Dordrecht. Died 1972 in Hoevelaken.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Archief Rivierenland (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Gelders Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Hendrik Ames

    Born 1869 in Vuren. Died 1939 in Haarlem, aged 69.

    Open Archives, Gelders Archief (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 269 records for Ames in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Australia239 records

239 records of the Ames name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 117
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 47
  • Other Australian records 75
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record William Ames

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Prince George, arriving 1837.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Arthur Ames

    Arrived in Victoria in 1886 aboard the Austral, aged 20; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Herbert L. E. Ames

    Postal employee of Preston, Victoria; died 1942.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 239 records for Ames in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Germany44 records

44 records of the Ames name in Germany
  • Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919 43
  • German applications to settle and marry 1
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Peter Ames

    From Ensdorf (vermutl.). Reported taken prisoner in the Prussian casualty list of 26 January 1915 (Infantry Regiment No. 98).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Anna Elisabetha Ames

    Named in an application to settle and marry at Schönbrunn in 1857.

    Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek / Staatsarchiv Bamberg (CC0)
  3. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Johann Ames

    From Bergweiler, Ottweiler. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 10 September 1918.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 3 of 44 records for Ames in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0) · Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Canada41 records

41 records of the Ames name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 17
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 9
  • Other Canadian records 15
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record George Roy Ames

    Buried in 1977 at St. Mary's Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 44.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Beatrice Ames

    Died 1918; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Jessie Ames

    Died 1959 in Sydney Mines, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 41 records for Ames in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom34 records

34 records of the Ames name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 19
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 13
  • Other British records 2
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Jane Ames

    Buried in 1857 at Logie Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 72.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record David Ames

    Will proved in 1922; of Portmadoc, Caernarvon.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record W. Ames

    Royal Fusiliers. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 34 records for Ames in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

France6 records

6 records of the Ames name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Barbe Ames

    Born 1904 in Moyeuvre-Grande (Moselle); died 1990 in Baccarat (Meurthe-et-Moselle).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Jacques Ames

    Born 1932 in Moyeuvre-Grande; died 1984 in Moyeuvre-Grande (Moselle).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 6 records for Ames in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

New Zealand2 records

2 records of the Ames name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Jane Emily Ames

    Died 1973, aged 85; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Edward Ames

    Died 1940, aged 54; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Belgium2 records

2 records of the Ames name in Belgium Belgian civil registers (births, marriages, deaths)
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Ludovica Ames

    Died 1903 in Gent.

    Open Archives, Archief Gent (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Adela Ames

    Died 1905 in Gent.

    Open Archives, Archief Gent (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Ames.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Ames is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

See the Ames volume
Scroll to Top