2000
#6,997
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,418
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.64
Rare Last name
Halliday
A Scottish locational surname derived from a place name meaning "Hallie's pasture land" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,041 Americans carry the last name Halliday. That puts it at #7,306 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.47 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 67,993 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Halliday 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 Halliday with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.0K
1 in 67,993
Census rank
#7,306
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,396 bearers of the surname Halliday in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.47 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7306th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Halliday, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Black (4.9%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Halliday
The surname Halliday originates from Scotland and dates back to the 12th century. It is a locational name derived from the Scottish Gaelic phrase "halidh", meaning "holy day", and refers to an area where religious fairs or markets were held on holy days. The name is also associated with the place name Halliday in Angus, Scotland.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Halliday can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented those who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. This includes entries for Adam de Haliday and John de Halydaye. The name also appears in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in the 14th century, with mentions of individuals such as William de Halyday and John de Halyday.
In the 16th century, the name was often spelled as "Halyday" or "Halidaye". A notable bearer of the name from this period was Sir Andrew Halliday (c. 1495-1568), a Scottish lawyer and clergyman who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh.
During the 17th century, the spelling "Halliday" became more standardized. One prominent individual with this surname was Sir Leonard Halliday (1617-1677), a Scottish merchant and Lord Provost of Edinburgh.
In the 18th century, the name continued to be associated with Scotland, with individuals such as John Halliday (1678-1756), a Scottish minister and author, and Thomas Halliday (1788-1877), a Scottish landscape painter.
The 19th century saw the name spread more widely across the British Isles and beyond. Notable bearers included Sir Andrew Halliday (1830-1919), a British colonial administrator in India, and Sir Frederick Halliday (1806-1901), a British naval officer and explorer.
Other notable individuals with the surname Halliday include Samuel Halliday (1685-1739), an Irish philosopher and writer, and David Halliday (1916-2010), an American physicist and author of influential textbooks on physics.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Halliday
Among Census respondents with the surname Halliday, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Black (4.9%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Halliday 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 Halliday surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.2% · 3,832
- Black or African American4.9% · 216
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 157
- Two or more races3.2% · 142
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 40
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Halliday
Halliday 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
#7,298
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,568
+150 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 1.55
Rank movement Down 301 places
2020
#7,306
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,396
-172 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 1.47
Rank movement Down 8 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,997 | 4,418 | 1.64 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,298 | 4,568 | 1.55 | +150 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 301 places |
| 2020 | #7,306 | 4,396 | 1.47 | -172 bearers (-3.8%) | Down 8 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 Halliday 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 | #7,298 | #7,306 | -0.1% |
| Count | 4,568 | 4,396 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.55 | 1.47 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Halliday bearers went from 4,568 to 4,396 (-3.8% change). The surname moved down 8 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,298 to #7,306.
FAQ
Halliday surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Halliday?
Name Census estimates that about 5,041 living Americans carry the surname Halliday. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 67,993 residents.
How common is Halliday?
Halliday ranks #7,306 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.47 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,396 people with the surname Halliday. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,041), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.47 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.47 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Halliday.
Has Halliday become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Halliday went from 4,568 recorded bearers to 4,396. That is a decrease of 172 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,298 to #7,306.
What does the Census say about the background of Halliday?
Among Census respondents with the surname Halliday, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Black (4.9%) and Hispanic (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 Halliday in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.2% (3,832 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Halliday appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.2%), Black (4.9%), Hispanic (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 Halliday (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 Halliday mean?
A Scottish locational surname derived from a place name meaning "Hallie's pasture land" in Old English. 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 Halliday (1.47 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 Halliday?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.