Explore the Family Name Pot

The meaning of Pot

1. French and Walloon: from the personal name Pot, an Old French short form of Philipot, itself a pet form of Philip. 2. French and Walloon: metonymic occupational name for a potter, from pot ‘pot’. 3. Flemish and Dutch: variant of Pott 3. 4. Dutch (Van der Pot): topographic name for someone living on a low-lying plot, from Low German dialect pōt ‘puddle’. 5. English: very rare variant of Pott, including as a cognate of 1 above. 6. Cambodian: written ពត, unexplained.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Pot in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Pot has seen a significant increase between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked at 86,341, but by 2010 it had moved up to rank 69,392, showing a growth of approximately 19.63%. The number of individuals with this surname also rose from 201 to 283, an impressive increase of 40.8%. Consequently, the proportion per 100,000 people increased by 42.86%, going from 0.07 to 0.1.

20002010Change
Rank#86,341#69,39219.63%
Count20128340.8%
Proportion per 100k0.070.142.86%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Pot

When it comes to ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that those bearing the surname Pot have diverse ethnic backgrounds. The largest ethnic group identified in both 2000 and 2010 were those of Asian/Pacific Islander descent, with 49.25% in 2000 growing slightly to 51.59% in 2010. Meanwhile, the proportion of those identifying as White dropped from 39.80% to 36.75%. Those identifying as having two or more races saw a decrease of 23.12%, while the percentage of those identifying as Black also decreased by 29.02%. Interestingly, the data showed that there was an emergence of Hispanic ethnicity within this surname, making up 4.59% of the total in 2010, whereas none was recorded in 2000. As for American Indian and Alaskan Native, there was no change over the decade, remaining at zero.

20002010Change
Asian/Pacific Islander49.25%51.59%4.75%
White39.8%36.75%-7.66%
Two or More Races5.97%4.59%-23.12%
Hispanic0%4.59%0%
Black3.48%2.47%-29.02%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%