Bleasdale last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Bleasdale

A locational surname derived from a place name in Lancashire, England.

Bleasdale, 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 Bleasdale surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bleasdale in America

Bleasdale is the 93513th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bleasdale surname appeared 196 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Bleasdale.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bleasdale 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 93513 99725 -6.43%
Count 196 168 15.38%
Proportion per 100k 0.07 0.06 15.38%

The history of the last name Bleasdale

The surname Bleasdale originated in Lancashire, England, with its earliest known bearers hailing from the village of Bleasdale within the Forest of Bowland. The name is derived from the Old English words "blæce" meaning "black" and "dæl" meaning "valley" or "dale," indicating a geographic location characterized by a dark or secluded valley.

The Bleasdale family can trace their roots back to the 12th century, with one of the earliest recorded mentions of the name appearing in the Pipe Rolls of Lancashire in 1176, where a certain Adam de Blersedal is listed as a landowner. Another early reference is found in the Assize Rolls of 1246, which document a dispute between Robert de Blesdale and the Abbey of Whalley over land rights.

During the medieval period, the Bleasdales were involved in various local conflicts and power struggles. In 1322, Gilbert de Blesdale was captured and imprisoned for his part in the rebellion against King Edward II, led by Thomas, Earl of Lancaster. A century later, in 1424, John Bleasdale was among the jurors who helped settle a boundary dispute between the townships of Bleasdale and Chipping.

The Bleasdale name is also linked to several notable figures throughout history. Sir Thomas Bleasdale (1560-1637) was a prominent lawyer and Chief Baron of the Exchequer during the reign of King James I. William Bleasdale (1754-1828) was an English Catholic priest and author who wrote extensively on theology and philosophy. John Bleasdale (1822-1898) was a British architect responsible for designing several churches and public buildings in Lancashire and Yorkshire.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, variations of the Bleasdale spelling emerged, including Bleasedall, Bleasdell, Bleasdill, and Bleasdaile, reflecting the changing pronunciation and regional dialects of the time. The name is also closely associated with the nearby town of Chipping, where many Bleasdale families settled and became prominent landowners and merchants.

While the Bleasdales were most numerous in Lancashire, the name spread across England and beyond, with notable bearers such as Richard Bleasdale (1790-1849), a British army officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars, and John Bleasdale (1809-1884), an Irish-born Catholic priest and educator who taught in Australia.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bleasdale

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

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 Bleasdale was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 92.35% 181
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 3.06% 6
Hispanic Origin 3.57% 7

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 Bleasdale has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 92.35% 90.48% 2.05%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% 3.57% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Two or More Races 3.06% (S)% (S)%
Hispanic 3.57% 5.36% -40.09%

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

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Bleasdale last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on July 11, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/bleasdale-surname-popularity/.

"Bleasdale last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/bleasdale-surname-popularity/. Accessed 11 July, 2025

Bleasdale last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/bleasdale-surname-popularity/.

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