2000
#10,863
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,693
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.00
Rare Last name
Bale
An English occupational surname referring to a maker or user of balers for hay or straw.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,901 Americans carry the last name Bale. That puts it at #11,833 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.85 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 118,150 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bale 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 Bale with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 118,150
Census rank
#11,833
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,530 bearers of the surname Bale in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.85 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11833rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bale, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.9%. The next largest groups are Black (4.8%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bale
The surname Bale originated in England, deriving from the Old English words 'bale' or 'bal', which referred to a strip of land or clearing. It is believed to have emerged as a surname in the 11th century.
The name was first concentrated in the counties of Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cheshire, where it likely referred to people living on or near such clearings or strips of land. Early spellings included Bale, Baal, and Bael.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where a landowner named Radulfus Bale is listed in Yorkshire. Another early reference is found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1176, which mention a William Bale.
By the 13th century, the name had spread to other parts of England, with instances recorded in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire (1273) and the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire (1275). Some of these early spellings include Balle and Bale.
The surname Bale is also associated with certain place names, such as Baleborough in Derbyshire and Baledon in Somerset, which may have influenced the name's development in those regions.
Notable individuals with the surname Bale throughout history include:
1. John Bale (1495-1563), an English Anglican bishop and historian during the Reformation era.
2. Robert Bale (1784-1861), an English religious writer and Baptist minister.
3. Manfred Bale (1900-1977), a German actor and film director active in the early 20th century.
4. Donald Bale (1925-2003), an American actor and father of Christian Bale.
5. Christian Bale (born 1974), the renowned English actor known for roles in films such as The Dark Knight trilogy, The Machinist, and The Boxer.
While the surname Bale has evolved over the centuries, it remains rooted in its Old English origins, reflecting the geographic and historical landscapes of England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bale
Among Census respondents with the surname Bale, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.9%. The next largest groups are Black (4.8%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Bale 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 Bale surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.9% · 2,098
- Black or African American4.8% · 121
- Two or more races4.6% · 117
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 96
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.6% · 90
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bale
Bale 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
#11,138
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,843
+150 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.96
Rank movement Down 275 places
2020
#11,833
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,530
-313 bearers (-11.0%)
Per 100,000 0.85
Rank movement Down 695 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,863 | 2,693 | 1.00 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,138 | 2,843 | 0.96 | +150 bearers (+5.6%) | Down 275 places |
| 2020 | #11,833 | 2,530 | 0.85 | -313 bearers (-11.0%) | Down 695 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 Bale 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 | #11,138 | #11,833 | -6.2% |
| Count | 2,843 | 2,530 | -11.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.96 | 0.85 | -11.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bale bearers went from 2,843 to 2,530 (-11.0% change). The surname moved down 695 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,138 to #11,833.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Bale
FAQ
Bale surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bale?
Name Census estimates that about 2,901 living Americans carry the surname Bale. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 118,150 residents.
How common is Bale?
Bale ranks #11,833 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.85 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 2,530 people with the surname Bale. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,901), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.85 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.85 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 Bale.
Has Bale become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bale went from 2,843 recorded bearers to 2,530. That is a decrease of 313 (-11.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,138 to #11,833.
What does the Census say about the background of Bale?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bale, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.9%. The next largest groups are Black (4.8%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Bale in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.9% (2,098 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bale appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.9%), Black (4.8%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Bale (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 Bale mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a maker or user of balers for hay or straw. 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 Bale (0.85 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 Bale?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.