2000
#338
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 82,955
First available Census row
Per 100,000 30.75
Uncommon Last name
Hale
Derived from a place name meaning "nook, hollow" or from an Old English word meaning "hero."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 95,296 Americans carry the last name Hale. That puts it at #375 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 27.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,597 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hale 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 Hale with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
95K
1 in 3,597
Census rank
#375
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
27.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
83K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 83,103 bearers of the surname Hale in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 27.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 375th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hale, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hale
The surname Hale has its origins in England and dates back to the Anglo-Saxon era. It is derived from the Old English words "hale" or "halig," which mean "healthy" or "wholesome." The name was likely given as a nickname to someone who appeared hale and hearty or to describe someone's physical strength and well-being.
Hale is a common place name in various parts of England, and the surname may have also been derived from these locations. For instance, there is a town called Hale in Cheshire, another in Hampshire, and a village in Lancashire. These place names are believed to have originated from the Old English word "halh," meaning a nook, corner, or remote valley.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Hale can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Hale." This suggests that the name was already established in England by the time of the Norman Conquest.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named William Hale was appointed as the Archbishop of Dol in Brittany, France, by King Henry III of England. Another early record is of a Sir Roger Hale, who served as a Member of Parliament for Lincolnshire in 1324.
During the 16th century, Sir Matthew Hale (1609-1676) was a prominent English judge and writer on legal matters. He is remembered for his influential works, such as "The History of the Pleas of the Crown" and "The History of the Common Law of England."
Other notable individuals with the surname Hale include the American author and playwright Sarah Josepha Hale (1788-1879), who is credited with successfully campaigning to establish Thanksgiving as a national holiday in the United States. Additionally, the English astronomer William Hale (1797-1870) made significant contributions to the study of sunspots and solar phenomena.
In the 20th century, the American actor and comedian Alan Hale Jr. (1921-1990) is widely recognized for his role as the Skipper on the popular television series "Gilligan's Island." Another notable figure is the American author and journalist Sarah Hale Folger (1858-1940), who was a pioneer in the field of women's education and served as the president of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hale
Among Census respondents with the surname Hale, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Hale 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 Hale surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.9% · 65,596
- Black or African American11.1% · 9,242
- Two or more races4.6% · 3,809
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 2,893
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 990
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 573
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hale
Hale 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
#362
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 86,618
+3,663 bearers (+4.4%)
Per 100,000 29.36
Rank movement Down 24 places
2020
#375
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 83,103
-3,515 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 27.80
Rank movement Down 13 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #338 | 82,955 | 30.75 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #362 | 86,618 | 29.36 | +3,663 bearers (+4.4%) | Down 24 places |
| 2020 | #375 | 83,103 | 27.80 | -3,515 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 13 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 Hale 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 | #362 | #375 | -3.6% |
| Count | 86,618 | 83,103 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 29.36 | 27.80 | -5.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hale bearers went from 86,618 to 83,103 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 13 positions in the national ranking, going from #362 to #375.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Hale
FAQ
Hale surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hale?
Name Census estimates that about 95,296 living Americans carry the surname Hale. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,597 residents.
How common is Hale?
Hale ranks #375 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 27.80 per 100,000 residents, which is about 28 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 83,103 people with the surname Hale. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (95,296), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 27.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 27.80 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 28 of them to have the surname Hale.
Has Hale become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hale went from 86,618 recorded bearers to 83,103. That is a decrease of 3,515 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #362 to #375.
What does the Census say about the background of Hale?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hale, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Hale in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.9% (65,596 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hale appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.9%), Black (11.1%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Hale (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 Hale mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "nook, hollow" or from an Old English word meaning "hero." 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 Hale (27.80 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 Americans have the surname Hale?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.