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

Hay, 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 Hay surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Hay in America

Hay is the 2005th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Hay surname appeared 18,029 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Hay.

We can also compare 2010 data for Hay 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.

The history of the last name Hay

The surname Hay originates from the Scottish Lowlands and is believed to have derived from a topographic name referring to an enclosed piece of ground or a meadow. The name can be traced back to the 12th century and is thought to have been derived from the Old English word "heg," meaning "hedge" or "enclosure."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Hay appears in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a record of Scottish landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. The name is also mentioned in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in the 14th century, indicating its widespread use across the country.

The Hay family played a significant role in Scottish history, with several notable members. Sir Gilbert de la Hay, born around 1285, was a prominent Scottish knight who fought alongside Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence. Another notable figure was Sir William Hay of Erroll, who lived in the 15th century and served as the Constable of Scotland.

In the 16th century, the Hays were an influential family in the Borders region of Scotland. One of the most well-known members was Alexander Hay, who was born in 1515 and served as the Secretary of State to Mary, Queen of Scots. He played a crucial role in the political affairs of the time and was involved in negotiating the Treaty of Edinburgh in 1560.

Another prominent figure was Sir John Hay, born in 1547, who was a Scottish diplomat and writer. He served as the Lord Chancellor of Scotland and was responsible for the Union of the Crowns in 1603, which united the kingdoms of Scotland and England under King James VI of Scotland (also known as James I of England).

The surname Hay has also been associated with various place names in Scotland, such as Hay Castle in Peebleshire and the town of Hawick, which was originally known as "Haye-wick" in the 12th century, meaning "the village in the meadow."

It's worth noting that the Hay surname has been subject to various spellings throughout history, including Haye, Heye, and Haigh, reflecting the changes in language and pronunciation over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Hay

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

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 Hay was:

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

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!