2000
#25,430
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 914
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.34
Rare Last name
Baldock
An English habitational surname for someone from Baldock in Hertfordshire.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,024 Americans carry the last name Baldock. That puts it at #28,415 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.30 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 334,721 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Baldock 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 Baldock with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.0K
1 in 334,721
Census rank
#28,415
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
893
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 893 bearers of the surname Baldock in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.30 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 28415th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldock, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Baldock
The surname Baldock originated in England, specifically in the county of Hertfordshire. It is believed to have derived from the town of Baldock in Hertfordshire, which itself takes its name from the Old English words 'bælde' meaning 'bold' and 'ac' meaning 'oak'. Thus, the name Baldock likely referred to someone who lived near a bold or prominent oak tree.
Records show that the town of Baldock existed as early as the 11th century, and the name Baldock is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of land and property ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. This suggests that the surname Baldock was in use by at least the 11th century.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Baldock was Robert de Baldok, who was a prominent English clergyman and Lord Chancellor of England in the 14th century. He was born around 1285 and died in 1327. Another early bearer of the name was John Baldock, a 14th-century English philosopher and theologian who taught at the University of Oxford.
In the 15th century, there was a John Baldock who was a member of parliament for Middlesex in 1449. In the 16th century, Sir Robert Baldock was a notable English lawyer and judge who served as a Justice of the King's Bench from 1556 to 1564.
A more recent bearer of the name was Ralph Baldock, an English cricketer who played for Gloucestershire County Cricket Club in the late 19th century. He was born in 1856 and died in 1902.
The surname Baldock has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Baldock in Hertfordshire, as well as Baldock's Hill in Berkshire and Baldock's Green in Middlesex. These place names likely derived from individuals with the surname Baldock who lived in or owned those areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Baldock
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldock, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Baldock 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 Baldock surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 821
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 31
- Two or more races2.6% · 23
- Black or African American1.1% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Baldock
Baldock 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
#26,695
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 912
-2 bearers (-0.2%)
Per 100,000 0.31
Rank movement Down 1,265 places
2020
#28,415
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 893
-19 bearers (-2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.30
Rank movement Down 1,720 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #25,430 | 914 | 0.34 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #26,695 | 912 | 0.31 | -2 bearers (-0.2%) | Down 1,265 places |
| 2020 | #28,415 | 893 | 0.30 | -19 bearers (-2.1%) | Down 1,720 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 Baldock 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 | #26,695 | #28,415 | -6.4% |
| Count | 912 | 893 | -2.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.31 | 0.30 | -3.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Baldock bearers went from 912 to 893 (-2.1% change). The surname moved down 1,720 positions in the national ranking, going from #26,695 to #28,415.
FAQ
Baldock surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Baldock?
Name Census estimates that about 1,024 living Americans carry the surname Baldock. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 334,721 residents.
How common is Baldock?
Baldock ranks #28,415 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.30 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 893 people with the surname Baldock. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,024), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.3 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.30 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 Baldock.
Has Baldock become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Baldock went from 912 recorded bearers to 893. That is a decrease of 19 (-2.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #26,695 to #28,415.
What does the Census say about the background of Baldock?
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldock, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Baldock in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (821 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Baldock appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Baldock (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 Baldock mean?
An English habitational surname for someone from Baldock in Hertfordshire. 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 Baldock (0.30 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 Americans have the surname Baldock?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.