2000
#13,980
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,981
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.73
Rare Last name
Baity
An English surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a place name or a nickname for a fisherman.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,157 Americans carry the last name Baity. That puts it at #15,061 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.63 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 158,903 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Baity 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
2.2K
1 in 158,903
Census rank
#15,061
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,881 bearers of the surname Baity in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.63 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15061st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Baity, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.7%. The next largest groups are Black (39.4%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Baity
The surname BAITY is believed to have originated in Scotland, with roots dating back to the 12th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "bæc" and "tun," which together translate to "back town" or "settlement at the back."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the BAITY name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a collection of homage rolls to King Edward I of England. The entry "Robertus de Bakceton" is believed to refer to an ancestor of the BAITY family.
During the 13th and 14th centuries, the BAITY name was primarily concentrated in the Scottish Lowlands, particularly in the counties of Ayrshire and Lanarkshire. The earliest known spelling variations include Bakton, Baktoun, and Bactoun.
In the 16th century, the BAITY name made its way across the border into northern England, where it was often anglicized to Backtown or Backtoun. One notable figure from this era was William Backtown (c. 1520-1585), a merchant and landowner in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne.
As the centuries passed, the BAITY name continued to spread throughout the British Isles and beyond. Notable bearers of the name include:
1. Robert Baity (1675-1741), a Scottish Presbyterian minister who emigrated to America and served as the first pastor of the Cub Creek Congregation in Pennsylvania.
2. Sir James Baity (1790-1867), a British naval officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars and later became the Governor of the Bahamas.
3. Mary Baity (1832-1911), an Irish-born educator and women's rights advocate who founded one of the first all-girls schools in Australia.
4. John Baity (1855-1932), a Scottish-American industrialist who made his fortune in the steel industry and was a prominent philanthropist in his later years.
5. William Baity (1899-1978), a Canadian artist and illustrator best known for his depictions of rural life in the Maritimes.
While the BAITY name has its roots in Scotland, it has since become a part of the cultural fabric of many nations, reflecting the diverse histories and experiences of those who have borne this surname over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Baity
Among Census respondents with the surname Baity, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.7%. The next largest groups are Black (39.4%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Baity 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 Baity surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White52.7% · 992
- Black or African American39.4% · 741
- Two or more races5.0% · 94
- Hispanic or Latino1.6% · 31
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Baity
Baity 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
#14,398
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,076
+95 bearers (+4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Down 418 places
2020
#15,061
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,881
-195 bearers (-9.4%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Down 663 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,980 | 1,981 | 0.73 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,398 | 2,076 | 0.70 | +95 bearers (+4.8%) | Down 418 places |
| 2020 | #15,061 | 1,881 | 0.63 | -195 bearers (-9.4%) | Down 663 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 Baity 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 | #14,398 | #15,061 | -4.6% |
| Count | 2,076 | 1,881 | -9.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.70 | 0.63 | -10.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Baity bearers went from 2,076 to 1,881 (-9.4% change). The surname moved down 663 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,398 to #15,061.
FAQ
Baity surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Baity?
Name Census estimates that about 2,157 living Americans carry the surname Baity. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 158,903 residents.
How common is Baity?
Baity ranks #15,061 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.63 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 1,881 people with the surname Baity. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,157), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.63 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.63 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 Baity.
Has Baity become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Baity went from 2,076 recorded bearers to 1,881. That is a decrease of 195 (-9.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,398 to #15,061.
What does the Census say about the background of Baity?
Among Census respondents with the surname Baity, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.7%. The next largest groups are Black (39.4%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Baity in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.7% (992 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Baity appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (52.7%), Black (39.4%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Baity (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 Baity mean?
An English surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a place name or a nickname for a fisherman. 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 Baity (0.63 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 Baity?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Baity at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.