2000
#10,323
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,860
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.06
Rare Last name
Hail
Derived from a Middle English topographic name for someone who lived at the end of a hall.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,647 Americans carry the last name Hail. That puts it at #4,566 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.52 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 39,639 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hail 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 Hail with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.6K
1 in 39,639
Census rank
#4,566
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,541 bearers of the surname Hail in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.52 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4566th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hail, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.7%. The next largest groups are Black (21.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hail
The surname Hail is of Anglo-Saxon origin, deriving from the Old English word "hægl" or "haegel," which means "hail" or "frozen rain." This name likely originated as a descriptive nickname for someone who lived in an area prone to hailstorms or was born during a particularly severe hailstorm.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Hail can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Hagel" or "Haigle." This suggests that the name was already in use during the 11th century in England.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the surname underwent various spelling variations, including Hayle, Haile, Hail, and Haill. These variations were common due to the lack of standardized spelling conventions during that time period.
In the 13th century, records show a John de Hayle residing in Gloucestershire, England. This could potentially be one of the earliest known bearers of the surname Hail or a variant spelling.
During the 16th century, the Hail surname was particularly prevalent in the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk in eastern England. Notable individuals from this era include William Hail, a merchant from Norwich, born around 1520, and John Hail, a landowner in Suffolk, born in the late 1500s.
In the 17th century, the Hail surname spread to other parts of England and Scotland. One prominent figure was Sir John Hail, a Scottish politician and judge who lived from 1609 to 1679.
Moving into the 18th century, the Hail surname continued to be found across Britain and began appearing in records in North America as well. Notable individuals from this time period include Samuel Hail, a British-born merchant who settled in Boston, Massachusetts, in the early 1700s, and Jonathan Hail, a farmer and soldier from Virginia, born in 1745.
As the surname spread across the English-speaking world, various place names and geographic features were named after individuals with the Hail surname. For example, Hail County in Texas, established in 1876, was named after Lieutenant John M. Hail, a soldier in the Texas Revolution.
Throughout its history, the surname Hail has been borne by several notable individuals, including Sir William Hail (1655-1736), an English politician and member of parliament; John Hail (1734-1806), an American soldier and frontier settler; and Robert Hail (1799-1873), a Scottish-born businessman and philanthropist in Canada.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hail
Among Census respondents with the surname Hail, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.7%. The next largest groups are Black (21.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Hail 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 Hail surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White69.7% · 5,253
- Black or African American21.4% · 1,617
- Two or more races3.6% · 272
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 252
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.4% · 102
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 45
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hail
Hail 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
#364
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 86,240
+83,380 bearers (+2915.4%)
Per 100,000 29.24
Rank movement Up 9,959 places
2020
#4,566
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,541
-78,699 bearers (-91.3%)
Per 100,000 2.52
Rank movement Down 4,202 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,323 | 2,860 | 1.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #364 | 86,240 | 29.24 | +83,380 bearers (+2915.4%) | Up 9,959 places |
| 2020 | #4,566 | 7,541 | 2.52 | -78,699 bearers (-91.3%) | Down 4,202 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 Hail 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 | #364 | #4,566 | -1154.4% |
| Count | 86,240 | 7,541 | -91.3% |
| Per 100K | 29.24 | 2.52 | -91.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hail bearers went from 86,240 to 7,541 (-91.3% change). The surname moved down 4,202 positions in the national ranking, going from #364 to #4,566.
FAQ
Hail surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hail?
Name Census estimates that about 8,647 living Americans carry the surname Hail. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 39,639 residents.
How common is Hail?
Hail ranks #4,566 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.52 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,541 people with the surname Hail. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,647), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.52 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.52 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Hail.
Has Hail become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hail went from 86,240 recorded bearers to 7,541. That is a decrease of 78,699 (-91.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #364 to #4,566.
What does the Census say about the background of Hail?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hail, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.7%. The next largest groups are Black (21.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Hail in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.7% (5,253 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hail appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (69.7%), Black (21.4%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Hail (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 Hail mean?
Derived from a Middle English topographic name for someone who lived at the end of a hall. 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 Hail (2.52 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 Hail?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.