2000
#84,631
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 206
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.08
Very Rare Last name
Babatunde
A Yoruba surname meaning "Father has returned" or "Born after the father's return."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 706 Americans carry the last name Babatunde. That puts it at #38,660 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.21 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 485,488 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Babatunde 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Babatunde with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
706
1 in 485,488
Census rank
#38,660
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
616
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 616 bearers of the surname Babatunde in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.21 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 38660th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Babatunde, the largest self-reported group is Black at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and White (1.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Babatunde
The surname Babatunde has its origins in the Yoruba people of southwestern Nigeria, West Africa. The name is a combination of two Yoruba words, "Baba" meaning father, and "Tunde" meaning comes to meet or comes to find.
Historically, the name Babatunde was likely given as a name to children who were born after the death of their grandfathers or great-grandfathers, symbolizing the belief that the child was a reincarnation of the deceased ancestor, coming back to meet or find the family. The name has been in use among the Yoruba people for centuries.
Early records of the name Babatunde can be found in various historical documents and manuscripts from the region, including Yoruba oral traditions and ancient texts. One notable example is the mention of a Yoruba chief named Babatunde in the writings of the 18th-century Scottish explorer and writer, Mungo Park, who traveled through the region.
Some of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Babatunde include Babatunde Ajayi, a Yoruba prince and military leader in the late 18th century, and Babatunde Okunola, a prominent Yoruba trader and entrepreneur in the 19th century.
Other notable individuals with the surname Babatunde throughout history include:
1. Babatunde Fani-Kayode (born 1960), a Nigerian lawyer, writer, and politician.
2. Babatunde Osotimehin (1949-2017), a Nigerian physician and former Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund.
3. Babatunde Olujobi (1935-2018), a Nigerian academic and former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos.
4. Babatunde Ogunnaike (born 1953), a Nigerian-American chemical engineer and academic.
5. Babatunde Obafemi Omokekhai (1909-1983), a Nigerian lawyer and politician who served as the first Speaker of the Western House of Assembly.
The surname Babatunde has maintained its cultural significance among the Yoruba people and has spread globally through migration and diaspora communities. It remains a prominent name in Nigeria and other parts of West Africa, as well as among people of Yoruba descent worldwide.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Babatunde
Among Census respondents with the surname Babatunde, the largest self-reported group is Black at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and White (1.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Babatunde 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 Babatunde surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American96.3% · 593
- Two or more races2.1% · 13
- White1.5% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Babatunde
Babatunde 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
#55,121
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 373
+167 bearers (+81.1%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Up 29,510 places
2020
#38,660
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 616
+243 bearers (+65.1%)
Per 100,000 0.21
Rank movement Up 16,461 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #84,631 | 206 | 0.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #55,121 | 373 | 0.13 | +167 bearers (+81.1%) | Up 29,510 places |
| 2020 | #38,660 | 616 | 0.21 | +243 bearers (+65.1%) | Up 16,461 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 Babatunde 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 | #55,121 | #38,660 | 29.9% |
| Count | 373 | 616 | 65.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.13 | 0.21 | 58.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Babatunde bearers went from 373 to 616 (+65.1% change). The surname moved up 16,461 positions in the national ranking, going from #55,121 to #38,660.
FAQ
Babatunde surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Babatunde?
Name Census estimates that about 706 living Americans carry the surname Babatunde. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 485,488 residents.
How common is Babatunde?
Babatunde ranks #38,660 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.21 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 616 people with the surname Babatunde. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (706), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.21 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.21 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Babatunde.
Has Babatunde become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Babatunde went from 373 recorded bearers to 616. That is an increase of 243 (+65.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #55,121 to #38,660.
What does the Census say about the background of Babatunde?
Among Census respondents with the surname Babatunde, the largest self-reported group is Black at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and White (1.5%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Babatunde in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.3% (593 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Babatunde appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (96.3%), Two or More Races (2.1%), White (1.5%). 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 Babatunde (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 Babatunde mean?
A Yoruba surname meaning "Father has returned" or "Born after the father's return." 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 Babatunde (0.21 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 share the surname Babatunde?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.