2010
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Baldor
Derived from Spanish words meaning "untilled land" or "barren field".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 133 Americans carry the last name Baldor. That puts it at #145,028 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,577,100 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Baldor 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
133
1 in 2,577,100
Census rank
#145,028
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
116
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 116 bearers of the surname Baldor in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145028th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldor, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 75.9%. The next largest groups are White (20.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Baldor
The surname Baldor has its origins in medieval England, dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "bald" and "dor," which together meant "the bold one." This name was likely bestowed upon a person with a brave or courageous demeanor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Baldor surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from the year 1194, where a certain William Baldor is mentioned as a landowner. Another historical reference is found in the Patent Rolls of 1311, which document a John Baldor from Lincolnshire.
During the Middle Ages, the Baldor family seemed to have been concentrated in the counties of Gloucestershire, Lincolnshire, and Somerset. The name has also been spelled in various ways over the centuries, including Baldore, Bauldor, and Bawdor.
An interesting connection can be drawn between the Baldor surname and the character of Banquo from Shakespeare's famous play "Macbeth." Some scholars have speculated that the name "Banquo" may have been derived from the Old English word "bald," lending credence to the idea that the Baldor name was well-known during Shakespeare's time.
One notable figure with the Baldor surname was Sir Robert Baldor, a 14th-century knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War between England and France. Another individual of note was William Baldor, a prominent merchant and member of the Guild of Mercers in London during the 16th century.
In the 17th century, the Baldor family had established roots in the county of Wiltshire, as evidenced by the baptismal records of John Baldor in the parish of Warminster in 1632. Later, in the 18th century, a certain Thomas Baldor gained recognition as a skilled clockmaker in the city of Bristol.
The Baldor surname has also been associated with places like Baldor's Gate, a medieval gate in the city of Canterbury, Kent, and Baldor's Cliffe, a rocky promontory on the coast of Yorkshire. These place names likely derived from individuals bearing the Baldor surname who resided in or owned land in those areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Baldor
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldor, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 75.9%. The next largest groups are White (20.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Baldor 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 Baldor surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino75.9% · 88
- White20.7% · 24
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Baldor
Baldor appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#145,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+13 bearers (+12.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 12,206 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #145,028 | 116 | 0.04 | +13 bearers (+12.6%) | Up 12,206 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 Baldor 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 | #157,234 | #145,028 | 7.8% |
| Count | 103 | 116 | 12.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 29.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Baldor bearers went from 103 to 116 (+12.6% change). The surname moved up 12,206 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #145,028.
FAQ
Baldor surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Baldor?
Name Census estimates that about 133 living Americans carry the surname Baldor. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,577,100 residents.
How common is Baldor?
Baldor ranks #145,028 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 116 people with the surname Baldor. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (133), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Baldor.
Has Baldor become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Baldor went from 103 recorded bearers to 116. That is an increase of 13 (+12.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #145,028.
What does the Census say about the background of Baldor?
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldor, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 75.9%. The next largest groups are White (20.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Baldor in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.9% (88 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Baldor appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (75.9%), White (20.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%). 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 Baldor (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 Baldor mean?
Derived from Spanish words meaning "untilled land" or "barren field". 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 Baldor (0.04 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 Baldor?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.