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

Bayes, 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 Bayes surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bayes in America

Bayes is the 14713th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bayes surname appeared 2,019 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Bayes.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bayes 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 Bayes

The surname Bayes originates from England and dates back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "bai", meaning reddish-brown, and was likely given as a nickname to someone with reddish-brown hair or complexion.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire from 1273, where it appears as "William le Bay". This suggests that the name was initially used as a descriptive byname before becoming a hereditary surname.

In the 14th century, the name was also found in various forms, such as "Bayes" and "Bays", in records from counties like Somerset, Oxfordshire, and Gloucestershire. This indicates that the name had spread across different regions of England during this period.

The Bayes surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the most prominent was Thomas Bayes (c. 1701–1761), an English mathematician and Presbyterian minister, who is best known for formulating Bayes' theorem, a fundamental concept in probability theory and statistics.

Another notable figure was Walter Bayes (1592–1633), an English clergyman and author who served as the Rector of Bramfield in Suffolk. He published several works, including "A Summary of Pious Meditations" and "The Mistery of Beholding the Serpents" in the early 17th century.

In the 18th century, William Bayes (1708–1773) was a renowned English architect who designed several notable buildings, including the Radcliffe Infirmary and the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin in Oxford.

During the 19th century, Samuel Bayes (1822–1887) was a British botanist and author who wrote extensively on the flora of Yorkshire and published works such as "The Yorkshire Floras" and "The Phanerogams of Yorkshire".

Another notable bearer of the surname was Ralph Bayes (1867–1938), an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Yorkshire County Cricket Club and represented England in Test matches against Australia and South Africa.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bayes

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

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

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

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