2000
#134,929
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Balbaugh
A surname of German origin denoting someone who lived near a brook or stream.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 112 Americans carry the last name Balbaugh. That puts it at #156,269 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,060,307 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Balbaugh 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
112
1 in 3,060,307
Census rank
#156,269
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
98
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 98 bearers of the surname Balbaugh in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156269th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Balbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Balbaugh
The surname Balbaugh has its origins in the German language. It is believed to have emerged in the late 16th or early 17th century, primarily in the regions of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany.
The name Balbaugh is thought to be derived from the German word "Balbier," which translates to "barber" or "barber-surgeon." This suggests that the name may have originated as an occupational surname, given to individuals or families involved in the trade of barbering or practiced as barber-surgeons.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Balbaugh can be found in the church records of the town of Ulm, located in the state of Baden-Württemberg, dating back to the late 17th century. The name appears with various spellings, such as "Balbücher," "Balbucher," and "Balbaucher," reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and orthography.
In the 18th century, the Balbaugh surname began to appear in records of German immigrants to North America, particularly in the regions of Pennsylvania and Virginia. Some notable individuals bearing this surname include Johann Balbaugh (1732-1812), a German-American farmer and Revolutionary War militiaman from Pennsylvania, and Johann Georg Balbaugh (1766-1831), a German immigrant who settled in Virginia and became a prominent landowner.
Another notable individual with the Balbaugh surname was Christian Balbaugh (1788-1859), a German-American farmer and Mennonite minister from Pennsylvania. He played a significant role in the establishment of the Old Order Mennonite Church in the region.
In the 19th century, the Balbaugh surname continued to spread across North America, with families settling in various states, including Ohio, Indiana, and Kansas. One notable figure from this period was Jacob Balbaugh (1815-1886), a farmer and businessman from Ohio who served as a Union soldier during the American Civil War.
Throughout its history, the Balbaugh surname has also been associated with various place names, such as Balbaugh Valley in Pennsylvania and Balbaugh Creek in Ohio, further emphasizing the geographical spread and influence of this family name.
It is worth noting that while the surname Balbaugh has its roots in Germany, over the centuries, it has undergone various spelling variations, including Balbach, Balbaugh, Balbaugh, Balbough, and Balbough, reflecting the linguistic and cultural influences of the regions in which the name has been adopted.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Balbaugh
Among Census respondents with the surname Balbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Balbaugh 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 Balbaugh surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.9% · 95
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Balbaugh
Balbaugh 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
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-8 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 17,699 places
2020
#156,269
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 98
-9 bearers (-8.4%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 3,641 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,929 | 115 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 17,699 places |
| 2020 | #156,269 | 98 | 0.03 | -9 bearers (-8.4%) | Down 3,641 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 Balbaugh 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 | #152,628 | #156,269 | -2.4% |
| Count | 107 | 98 | -8.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -18.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Balbaugh bearers went from 107 to 98 (-8.4% change). The surname moved down 3,641 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #156,269.
FAQ
Balbaugh surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Balbaugh?
Name Census estimates that about 112 living Americans carry the surname Balbaugh. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,060,307 residents.
How common is Balbaugh?
Balbaugh ranks #156,269 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 98 people with the surname Balbaugh. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (112), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Balbaugh.
Has Balbaugh become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Balbaugh went from 107 recorded bearers to 98. That is a decrease of 9 (-8.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #152,628 to #156,269.
What does the Census say about the background of Balbaugh?
Among Census respondents with the surname Balbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%). 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 Balbaugh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.9% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Balbaugh appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%). 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 Balbaugh (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 Balbaugh mean?
A surname of German origin denoting someone who lived near a brook or stream. 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 Balbaugh (0.03 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 surname Balbaugh?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.