Find out how popular the last name Balay is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Balay.

Balay, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Balay surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Balay in America

Balay is the 59901st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Balay surname appeared 337 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Balay.

We can also compare 2010 data for Balay to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Balay

The surname BALAY has its origins in Spain, tracing back to the early medieval period. The name is believed to derive from the Catalan word "balai," which means "broom" or "bundle of twigs." This suggests that the name may have initially been an occupational surname for someone who made or sold brooms.

In the 13th century, the name BALAY appears in several historical records from the region of Catalonia in northeastern Spain. One notable mention is found in the Llibre Verd, a collection of legal documents from the city of Barcelona, where a certain Pere Balay is listed as a witness in a land dispute in 1285.

The earliest recorded instance of the BALAY surname is from a birth record in the town of Girona, dating back to 1412. The record mentions a child named Joan Balay, son of Bernat Balay and his wife, Elisenda.

As the BALAY family spread throughout Spain and beyond, variations in spelling emerged, such as Ballay, Balai, and Balaya. These variations were often influenced by regional dialects and local pronunciation.

The BALAY surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One such figure is Jaume Balay, a 16th-century merchant from Barcelona who played a significant role in establishing trade routes between Spain and the Americas.

Another prominent individual was Antonio Balay y Fernández, a Spanish military officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century. He was born in 1782 and died in 1844.

In the realm of literature, Juan Balay was a celebrated poet and playwright from Valencia, Spain, who lived during the late 16th and early 17th centuries. His works, including plays and sonnets, were widely acclaimed during his lifetime.

The BALAY surname has also been associated with several place names, such as the town of Balaiá in the province of Lleida, Catalonia. This town's name is believed to be derived from the same root as the surname, further reinforcing the connection to the broom-making trade.

Lastly, it is worth mentioning María Balay, a renowned Spanish artist who lived in the late 19th century. Born in 1858 and died in 1932, she was celebrated for her vibrant paintings depicting everyday life in rural Spain.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Balay

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Balay.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Balay was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Balay has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Balay was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Balay, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!