The Holmes surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 156,780 people carried this name — #171 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 1,880 people counted. That is up 4% from 150,166 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Holmes surname
A northern English surname from Middle English, variant of Holme.
From holme, variant of holm (“islet”).
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Holmes» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890
Ireland registered 84 births for the Holmes name in 1890.
They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 3,700 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. 3 of them were indexed under other spellings of the name. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Antrim and Dublin.”
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born, 1890
Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 88 people named Holmes.
Most of them — 70 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 5 départements, most often Nord.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
88 people named Holmes live in Switzerland.
They live in 13 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Bern.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 71 people named Holmes 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 Buenos Aires Province.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Poland’s population register
26 people named Holmes have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 100 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 6 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Masovian.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In the Nordic population registers
134 people named Holmes are counted in Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Holmes in American newspapers,
1895–1925.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,317,410 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Holmes,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Abiel Holmes 1763–1837 · writer -
William Holmes 1779–1851 · politician -
Benjamin Holmes 1794–1865 · politician -
Andrew Fernando Holmes 1797–1860 · physician -
Jean Holmes 1799–1852 · Catholic priest
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 227 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Holmes.
- Hollender 408 · U.S. census
- Holler 4,836 · U.S. census
- Holley 30,231 · U.S. census
- Hollier 1,941 · U.S. census
- Holliger 200 · U.S. census
- Hollinger 5,634 · U.S. census
- Holquin 443 · U.S. census
- Holstein 4,098 · U.S. census
- Holt 87,531 · U.S. census
- Holtz 9,502 · U.S. census
- Holtzer 455 · U.S. census
- Holtzinger 421 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Holmes 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.