2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Belloff
A surname derived from the Slavic words "bel" (white) and "off" (son), likely referring to a fair-haired individual.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124 Americans carry the last name Belloff. That puts it at #150,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,764,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Belloff 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
124
1 in 2,764,148
Census rank
#150,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
108
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108 bearers of the surname Belloff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Belloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Belloff
The surname BELLOFF is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "bell" and "hoff," which together translate to "bell house" or "bell court." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived near or worked in a building where bells were housed or maintained.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name BELLOFF can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from the year 1195, where a certain Robert Belloff is mentioned as a landowner. This indicates that the BELLOFF family had already established itself as part of the English gentry by the late 12th century.
Another notable early reference to the name comes from the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire, a survey of landholdings conducted in 1279. Here, a Walter Belloff is listed as holding property in the village of Sawston.
By the 14th century, the BELLOFF name had spread to other parts of England, as evidenced by records from the Court of Common Pleas in Norfolk from 1349, which mention a John Belloff involved in a legal dispute over land.
One of the earliest known bearers of the BELLOFF surname was Sir William Belloff, who was born in 1415 in Gloucestershire and served as a knight under King Henry VI during the latter part of the Hundred Years' War. He fought at the Battle of Castillon in 1453, one of the final major engagements of the conflict.
During the Tudor period, the BELLOFF family maintained a prominent presence in the English gentry. Notable figures from this time include Thomas Belloff (1510-1581), a member of Parliament for Gloucestershire, and his son, Richard Belloff (1545-1602), who served as High Sheriff of Gloucestershire.
As the BELLOFF name spread across England over the centuries, various spelling variations emerged, including Beloff, Bellof, and Bellough. Some of these variations may have been influenced by the names of particular towns or villages where branches of the family resided.
While the BELLOFF surname is not as common today as it once was, it has left a lasting mark on English history and can be traced back to its medieval origins as a name associated with those who lived or worked in proximity to bell towers or bell-related buildings.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Belloff
Among Census respondents with the surname Belloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Belloff 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 Belloff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.4% · 102
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 4
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Belloff
Belloff 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
#138,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+12 bearers (+11.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 2,452 places
2020
#150,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-13 bearers (-10.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,631 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #138,304 | 121 | 0.04 | +12 bearers (+11.0%) | Up 2,452 places |
| 2020 | #150,935 | 108 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-10.7%) | Down 12,631 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 Belloff 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 | #138,304 | #150,935 | -9.1% |
| Count | 121 | 108 | -10.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -9.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Belloff bearers went from 121 to 108 (-10.7% change). The surname moved down 12,631 positions in the national ranking, going from #138,304 to #150,935.
FAQ
Belloff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Belloff?
Name Census estimates that about 124 living Americans carry the surname Belloff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,764,148 residents.
How common is Belloff?
Belloff ranks #150,935 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 108 people with the surname Belloff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124), 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 Belloff.
Has Belloff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Belloff went from 121 recorded bearers to 108. That is a decrease of 13 (-10.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #138,304 to #150,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Belloff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Belloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Black (0.9%). 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 Belloff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.4% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Belloff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.4%), Hispanic (3.7%), Black (0.9%). 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 Belloff (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 Belloff mean?
A surname derived from the Slavic words "bel" (white) and "off" (son), likely referring to a fair-haired individual. 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 Belloff (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 people share the surname Belloff?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.