2000
#12,524
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,269
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Alday
A Basque toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "by the water" or "by the river ford."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,946 Americans carry the last name Alday. That puts it at #11,678 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 116,346 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Alday surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 116,346
Census rank
#11,678
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,569 bearers of the surname Alday in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11678th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Alday, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 50.2%. The next largest groups are White (35.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (11.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Alday
The surname Alday is of Spanish origin and can be traced back to the medieval era. It is believed to have originated from the Basque region of northern Spain, where it was likely derived from the Basque word "alda," meaning "hillside" or "slope." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near or on a hillside.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Alday surname can be found in the "Becerro de las Behetrías," a census-like document compiled in the 14th century during the reign of King Pedro I of Castile. This document listed individuals and their properties, indicating that Alday was already an established surname by that time.
In the 15th century, records show an individual named Juan de Alday, who was a prominent merchant and landowner in the town of Bilbao. His descendants continued to play influential roles in the region's economic and political affairs for several generations.
During the 16th century, the Alday surname appeared in various historical documents related to the Spanish conquest of the Americas. One notable figure was Pedro de Alday, a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the expeditions of Hernán Cortés in Mexico. He was born in the late 15th century and died around 1550.
Another individual of note was Miguel de Alday, a Catholic priest and theologian who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was born in Navarra, Spain, and served as a professor of theology at the University of Salamanca, one of the most prestigious academic institutions of the time.
In the 18th century, the Alday surname was associated with the town of Álava, located in the Basque Country. Records from this period mention a family named Alday who owned significant landholdings in the area and played a prominent role in local affairs.
Throughout history, the Alday surname has been spelled in various ways, including Aldai, Aldaya, and Aldaye, reflecting regional linguistic variations and the evolution of spelling conventions over time. However, the core meaning and origin of the name have remained consistent, tracing back to its Basque roots and association with hillsides or slopes.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Alday
Among Census respondents with the surname Alday, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 50.2%. The next largest groups are White (35.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (11.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Alday bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Alday surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino50.2% · 1,289
- White35.6% · 914
- Asian and Pacific Islander11.3% · 291
- Two or more races1.7% · 43
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 20
- Black or African American0.5% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Alday
Alday appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#10,250
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,145
+876 bearers (+38.6%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Up 2,274 places
2020
#11,678
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,569
-576 bearers (-18.3%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Down 1,428 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,524 | 2,269 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,250 | 3,145 | 1.07 | +876 bearers (+38.6%) | Up 2,274 places |
| 2020 | #11,678 | 2,569 | 0.86 | -576 bearers (-18.3%) | Down 1,428 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Alday surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #10,250 | #11,678 | -13.9% |
| Count | 3,145 | 2,569 | -18.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.07 | 0.86 | -19.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Alday bearers went from 3,145 to 2,569 (-18.3% change). The surname moved down 1,428 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,250 to #11,678.
FAQ
Alday surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Alday?
Name Census estimates that about 2,946 living Americans carry the surname Alday. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 116,346 residents.
How common is Alday?
Alday ranks #11,678 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.86 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,569 people with the surname Alday. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,946), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.86 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Alday.
Has Alday become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Alday went from 3,145 recorded bearers to 2,569. That is a decrease of 576 (-18.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,250 to #11,678.
What does the Census say about the background of Alday?
Among Census respondents with the surname Alday, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 50.2%. The next largest groups are White (35.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (11.3%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Alday in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.2% (1,289 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Alday appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (50.2%), White (35.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (11.3%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Alday (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Alday mean?
A Basque toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "by the water" or "by the river ford." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Alday (0.86 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Alday?
Find out how many people are called Alday on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.