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

Ballenger, 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 Ballenger surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ballenger in America

Ballenger is the 6805th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ballenger surname appeared 4,956 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Ballenger.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ballenger 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 Ballenger

The surname BALLENGER is of English origin, deriving from the Old English words 'bæl' meaning 'fire' or 'blaze' and 'eng' meaning 'meadow' or 'field'. It likely originated in the early medieval period as a locational name for someone who lived near a field or meadow where fires were lit.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1285, where it appears as 'Balenger'. This suggests the name was already established by the late 13th century in the county of Essex, which may have been the original homeland of the Ballenger family.

The Ballenger name is also found in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire in 1327, spelled as 'Balenger'. This indicates the name had spread to other parts of England by the early 14th century.

A notable early bearer of the name was John Ballenger, a landowner from Worcestershire who was recorded in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Hales in 1432. Another early example is Thomas Ballenger, who was listed in the Muster Rolls for Warwickshire in 1539.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name was sometimes spelled as 'Balinger' or 'Ballingar', reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling. William Balinger, born around 1560 in Gloucestershire, was a prominent figure during this period.

In the late 17th century, the playwright John Ballenger (1670-1725) gained recognition for his works, which included the comedies "The Constant Couple" and "The Recruiting Officer". His contemporary, Sir Richard Ballenger (1679-1744), was a renowned military officer who served in the War of the Spanish Succession.

Other notable bearers of the Ballenger name include the explorer and naturalist Robert Ballenger (1825-1888), who made significant contributions to the study of the flora and fauna of the American West, and the novelist and essayist Alice Ballenger (1862-1933), whose works explored themes of feminism and social reform.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ballenger

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

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 Ballenger 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 Ballenger 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 Ballenger was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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