Harbold last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Harbold

A surname derived from a Germanic personal name meaning "army bold" or "battle brave".

Harbold, 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 Harbold surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Harbold in America

Harbold is the 37646th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Harbold surname appeared 591 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 Harbold.

We can also compare 2010 data for Harbold 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.

20102000Change (%)
Rank376463184816.69%
Count591685-14.73%
Proportion per 100k0.200.25-22.22%

The history of the last name Harbold

The surname Harbold is believed to have originated in England, with roots tracing back to the Anglo-Saxon era in the 8th or 9th century. It is thought to be a locational name, derived from a place name that no longer exists or has been lost to history.

Some etymologists suggest that the name Harbold may be composed of two Old English elements: "hær" meaning army or warrior, and "bold" meaning a dwelling or house. This would indicate that the name originally referred to a warrior's residence or a fortified dwelling place.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Harbold surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a manuscript commissioned by William the Conqueror to record the land holdings and taxable assets in England. The entry mentions a landowner named Herbold in the county of Yorkshire.

During the Middle Ages, the name appeared with various spellings, such as Hærbold, Herbold, and Harbould, reflecting the lack of standardized spelling conventions at the time. These variations often corresponded to different regions or local dialects.

Historically, the Harbold surname has been associated with several notable individuals. One such figure was Sir William Harbold, a prominent knight who fought alongside King Edward III in the Hundred Years' War during the 14th century.

Another individual of note was John Harbold, a merchant and alderman who served as the Lord Mayor of London in the late 16th century (1589-1590). His legacy includes the construction of almshouses and charitable foundations in the city.

In the 17th century, there was a Thomas Harbold, who was a member of the Virginia Company, a joint-stock company that established the first permanent English settlement in North America at Jamestown in 1607.

Moving to the 18th century, we find Elizabeth Harbold, a renowned portrait painter who was active in London during the 1770s and gained recognition for her skillful depictions of aristocratic subjects.

Finally, in the 19th century, there was William Harbold, a prominent architect who designed several notable buildings in the Gothic Revival style, including churches and public institutions in various cities across England.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Harbold

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

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 Harbold was:

Race/EthnicityPercentageTotal Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only97.29%575
Non-Hispanic Black Only0.00%0
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only0.00%0
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races(S)%(S)
Hispanic Origin1.86%11

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

20102000Change (%)
White97.29%96.50%0.82%
Black0.00%0.00%0.00%
Asian and Pacific Islander0.00%(S)%(S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native(S)%(S)%(S)%
Two or More Races(S)%(S)%(S)%
Hispanic1.86%2.48%-28.57%

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

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

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