2000
#134,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Babiy
A Ukrainian surname derived from the word "baba" meaning old woman, grandmother.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 308 Americans carry the last name Babiy. That puts it at #76,963 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,112,839 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Babiy 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
308
1 in 1,112,839
Census rank
#76,963
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
269
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 269 bearers of the surname Babiy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 76963rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Babiy, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Babiy
The surname BABIY originated in Eastern Europe, specifically in the regions of modern-day Poland, Ukraine, and Belarus. It likely emerged in the 15th or 16th century, derived from the Polish word "baba," which means "old woman" or "grandmother." This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive nickname or a reference to a female ancestor.
One of the earliest documented references to the BABIY surname can be found in the Polish records from the city of Krakow, dating back to the late 16th century. These records mention a certain Jan BABIY, a merchant who lived and worked in the city during that time period.
In the 17th century, the name appeared in various historical documents across the regions of Galicia and Volhynia, which were part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at the time. Some notable individuals bearing the BABIY surname from this era include Petro BABIY, a Cossack leader who participated in the Khmelnytsky Uprising against Polish rule in the mid-17th century, and Hryhorii BABIY, a prominent Orthodox priest and writer from the town of Lutsk in modern-day Ukraine.
As the BABIY surname spread across Eastern Europe, it also took on various localized spellings and variations, such as BABIJ, BABIY, BABIJCZUK, and BABIJEWICZ. Some of these variations may have been influenced by the local dialects and languages in the areas where the name was adopted.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the BABIY surname in Russia was Ivan BABIY, born in the late 18th century in the village of Novaya Rosava, near the city of Voronezh. He was a prominent landowner and served as a local administrator under the Tsarist regime.
In the 19th century, the BABIY surname gained recognition in the field of literature, with the Ukrainian writer and poet Ivan BABIY (1836-1902), who was born in the village of Khotyn, near modern-day Lviv. His works often explored themes of rural life and the struggles of the Ukrainian peasantry under Imperial Russian rule.
As the BABIY surname spread across Eastern Europe and beyond, it has been associated with various notable individuals throughout history, including Mykola BABIY (1904-1987), a Ukrainian mathematician and academic who made significant contributions to the field of differential equations, and Vasyl BABIY (1924-2004), a Ukrainian artist and sculptor known for his monumental works and public sculptures.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Babiy
Among Census respondents with the surname Babiy, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Babiy 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 Babiy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.9% · 258
- Hispanic or Latino1.5% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 3
- Two or more races0.7% · 2
- Black or African American0.4% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Babiy
Babiy 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
#83,541
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 225
+109 bearers (+94.0%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Up 50,496 places
2020
#76,963
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 269
+44 bearers (+19.6%)
Per 100,000 0.09
Rank movement Up 6,578 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,037 | 116 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #83,541 | 225 | 0.08 | +109 bearers (+94.0%) | Up 50,496 places |
| 2020 | #76,963 | 269 | 0.09 | +44 bearers (+19.6%) | Up 6,578 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 Babiy 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 | #83,541 | #76,963 | 7.9% |
| Count | 225 | 269 | 19.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.08 | 0.09 | 12.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Babiy bearers went from 225 to 269 (+19.6% change). The surname moved up 6,578 positions in the national ranking, going from #83,541 to #76,963.
FAQ
Babiy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Babiy?
Name Census estimates that about 308 living Americans carry the surname Babiy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,112,839 residents.
How common is Babiy?
Babiy ranks #76,963 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.09 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 269 people with the surname Babiy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (308), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.09 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 Babiy.
Has Babiy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Babiy went from 225 recorded bearers to 269. That is an increase of 44 (+19.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #83,541 to #76,963.
What does the Census say about the background of Babiy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Babiy, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.1%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Babiy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.9% (258 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Babiy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.9%), Hispanic (1.5%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.1%). 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 Babiy (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 Babiy mean?
A Ukrainian surname derived from the word "baba" meaning old woman, grandmother. 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 Babiy (0.09 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 Babiy?
Want to know how many people are called Babiy? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.