2000
#8,699
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,478
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.29
Rare Last name
Maiden
An occupational surname referring to a person who works with wood, such as a carpenter or cabinet maker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,931 Americans carry the last name Maiden. That puts it at #9,148 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 87,193 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Maiden 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 Maiden with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.9K
1 in 87,193
Census rank
#9,148
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,428 bearers of the surname Maiden in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9148th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Maiden, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.8%. The next largest groups are Black (31.8%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Maiden
The surname Maiden is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "mæiden," meaning "maiden" or "unmarried woman." This name was likely given as a descriptive surname to someone who remained unmarried or who was a servant or attendant to a noblewoman.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Maiden can be found in various historical records from the 13th century onwards. One notable example is the mention of a William le Mayden in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1279. This early spelling variation highlights the evolution of the name over time.
In the 14th century, the surname Maiden appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire, where a John Mayden was listed as a taxpayer in 1379. This record suggests that the name was well-established in the northern regions of England during this period.
The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of England compiled in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the surname Maiden. However, it does mention several place names that may have influenced the development of the surname, such as Maidstone in Kent and Maidwell in Northamptonshire.
Notable individuals with the surname Maiden throughout history include:
1. Roger Maiden (c. 1455 - c. 1518), an English printer who worked in London during the early years of the printing press in England.
2. Sir Samuel Maiden (1587 - 1668), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Warwickshire from 1640 to 1648.
3. Benjamin Maiden (1647 - 1718), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Provost of Worcester College, Oxford.
4. John Maiden (1782 - 1857), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars and later became a Rear Admiral.
5. Joseph Maiden (1859 - 1925), an English-born Australian botanist and curator of the National Herbarium of New South Wales.
While the surname Maiden has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world due to migration and exploration. Over time, various spellings and variations of the name have emerged, such as Mayden, Maden, and Madin, reflecting regional dialects and linguistic influences.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Maiden
Among Census respondents with the surname Maiden, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.8%. The next largest groups are Black (31.8%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Maiden 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 Maiden surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.8% · 2,050
- Black or African American31.8% · 1,090
- Two or more races3.9% · 134
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 114
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Maiden
Maiden 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
#8,456
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,905
+427 bearers (+12.3%)
Per 100,000 1.32
Rank movement Up 243 places
2020
#9,148
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,428
-477 bearers (-12.2%)
Per 100,000 1.15
Rank movement Down 692 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,699 | 3,478 | 1.29 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,456 | 3,905 | 1.32 | +427 bearers (+12.3%) | Up 243 places |
| 2020 | #9,148 | 3,428 | 1.15 | -477 bearers (-12.2%) | Down 692 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 Maiden 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 | #8,456 | #9,148 | -8.2% |
| Count | 3,905 | 3,428 | -12.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.32 | 1.15 | -13.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Maiden bearers went from 3,905 to 3,428 (-12.2% change). The surname moved down 692 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,456 to #9,148.
FAQ
Maiden surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Maiden?
Name Census estimates that about 3,931 living Americans carry the surname Maiden. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 87,193 residents.
How common is Maiden?
Maiden ranks #9,148 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.15 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 3,428 people with the surname Maiden. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,931), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.15 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 Maiden.
Has Maiden become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Maiden went from 3,905 recorded bearers to 3,428. That is a decrease of 477 (-12.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,456 to #9,148.
What does the Census say about the background of Maiden?
Among Census respondents with the surname Maiden, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.8%. The next largest groups are Black (31.8%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Maiden in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.8% (2,050 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Maiden appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (59.8%), Black (31.8%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Maiden (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 Maiden mean?
An occupational surname referring to a person who works with wood, such as a carpenter or cabinet maker. 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 Maiden (1.15 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 Maiden?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.