2000
#21,176
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,155
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.43
Rare Last name
Bail
A French occupational surname referring to a steward or manager of an estate.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,234 Americans carry the last name Bail. That puts it at #24,261 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.36 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 277,759 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bail 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 Bail with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.2K
1 in 277,759
Census rank
#24,261
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,076 bearers of the surname Bail in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.36 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 24261st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bail, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (15.3%) and Black (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bail
The surname BAIL is of French origin, originating in the 12th century. It is derived from the Old French word "baille", which means "enclosure" or "outer wall". The name likely referred to someone who lived near or worked with enclosures or outer walls, such as a gatekeeper or a bailiff.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Bail" and "Baille". During the Middle Ages, the name was also spelled as "Baille", "Baile", and "Bayll".
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was William Bail, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1195. Another early bearer was Robert Bail, who was recorded in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273.
In the 14th century, the name Bail was associated with several place names in England, such as Baildon in West Yorkshire and Bailrigg in Lancashire. These place names likely derived from the Old English word "bæl", meaning "a fire or beacon".
A notable person with the surname Bail was John Bail, a 15th-century English merchant and alderman of London, who was born in 1422 and died in 1492.
Another significant figure was Thomas Bail, a 16th-century English clergyman and religious reformer, who was born in 1499 and died in 1563. He played a crucial role in the English Reformation and was a close associate of Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury.
In the 17th century, the name Bail was associated with Sir William Bail, an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Hertfordshire in the 1620s.
In the 18th century, John Bail, a British architect and surveyor, was born in 1725 and died in 1806. He was responsible for designing several notable buildings in London, including the St. Pancras Church.
In the 19th century, Charles Wyndham Bail, an English author and journalist, was born in 1845 and died in 1921. He wrote several books on historical and literary subjects and was a prominent figure in the literary circles of his time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bail
Among Census respondents with the surname Bail, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (15.3%) and Black (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Bail 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 Bail surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.1% · 808
- Hispanic or Latino15.3% · 165
- Black or African American4.6% · 50
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 12
- Two or more races1.1% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bail
Bail 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
#2,421
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,957
+13,802 bearers (+1195.0%)
Per 100,000 5.07
Rank movement Up 18,755 places
2020
#24,261
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,076
-13,881 bearers (-92.8%)
Per 100,000 0.36
Rank movement Down 21,840 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #21,176 | 1,155 | 0.43 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,421 | 14,957 | 5.07 | +13,802 bearers (+1195.0%) | Up 18,755 places |
| 2020 | #24,261 | 1,076 | 0.36 | -13,881 bearers (-92.8%) | Down 21,840 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 Bail 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 | #2,421 | #24,261 | -902.1% |
| Count | 14,957 | 1,076 | -92.8% |
| Per 100K | 5.07 | 0.36 | -92.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bail bearers went from 14,957 to 1,076 (-92.8% change). The surname moved down 21,840 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,421 to #24,261.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Bail
FAQ
Bail surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bail?
Name Census estimates that about 1,234 living Americans carry the surname Bail. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 277,759 residents.
How common is Bail?
Bail ranks #24,261 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.36 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 1,076 people with the surname Bail. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,234), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.36 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.36 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 Bail.
Has Bail become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bail went from 14,957 recorded bearers to 1,076. That is a decrease of 13,881 (-92.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,421 to #24,261.
What does the Census say about the background of Bail?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bail, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (15.3%) and Black (4.6%). 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 Bail in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.1% (808 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bail appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.1%), Hispanic (15.3%), Black (4.6%). 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 Bail (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 Bail mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a steward or manager of an estate. 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 Bail (0.36 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 Bail?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.