2000
#29,099
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 767
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.28
Very Rare Last name
Quale
A surname derived from the Italian word 'quale' meaning 'which' or 'what'.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 850 Americans carry the last name Quale. That puts it at #33,142 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.25 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 403,240 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Quale 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.
Bearers in the US
850
1 in 403,240
Census rank
#33,142
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
741
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 741 bearers of the surname Quale in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.25 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 33142nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Quale, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Quale
The surname Quale is of Italian origin, deriving from the Italian word "quale," meaning "what" or "which." It first emerged in the medieval period, likely in the northern regions of Italy.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the surname Quale is found in the 14th-century Florentine tax records, suggesting its presence in the city of Florence during that time. The name may have originated as a descriptive nickname or a locational name referring to a particular place or region.
In the 15th century, the Quale family gained prominence in the city of Venice. records indicate that a Giovanni Quale was a prominent merchant and banker who played a significant role in the city's economic affairs during that period.
Another notable figure bearing the surname Quale was Giacomo Quale, a Renaissance artist from the city of Siena who lived between 1480 and 1550. He was renowned for his frescoes and altarpieces, many of which can still be found in churches throughout Tuscany.
During the 16th century, the Quale family expanded their influence beyond Italy. One branch settled in Spain, where they adopted the spelling "Qual." Francisco Qual, born in 1570, was a Spanish explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico and played a crucial role in the conquest of the Aztec Empire.
In the 17th century, a member of the Quale family, Antonio Quale (1620-1690), gained recognition as a prominent jurist and legal scholar in the Papal States. His treatises on canon law were widely studied and respected throughout Europe.
Another notable figure was the Italian mathematician and astronomer, Giuseppe Quale (1675-1745), who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the motion of planets. He was a member of the prestigious Accademia dei Lincei, one of the oldest scientific academies in the world.
As the Quale family spread across Europe, variations in spelling emerged, such as "Qualle" and "Quayle." In the 18th century, the Quayle family established themselves in the Isle of Man, where they became prominent landowners and merchants.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Quale
Among Census respondents with the surname Quale, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Quale 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 Quale surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.7% · 687
- Hispanic or Latino2.2% · 16
- Two or more races2.2% · 16
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.6% · 12
- Black or African American1.2% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Quale
Quale 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
#31,001
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 749
-18 bearers (-2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.25
Rank movement Down 1,902 places
2020
#33,142
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 741
-8 bearers (-1.1%)
Per 100,000 0.25
Rank movement Down 2,141 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #29,099 | 767 | 0.28 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #31,001 | 749 | 0.25 | -18 bearers (-2.3%) | Down 1,902 places |
| 2020 | #33,142 | 741 | 0.25 | -8 bearers (-1.1%) | Down 2,141 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 Quale 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 | #31,001 | #33,142 | -6.9% |
| Count | 749 | 741 | -1.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.25 | 0.25 | -0.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Quale bearers went from 749 to 741 (-1.1% change). The surname moved down 2,141 positions in the national ranking, going from #31,001 to #33,142.
FAQ
Quale surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Quale?
Name Census estimates that about 850 living Americans carry the surname Quale. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 403,240 residents.
How common is Quale?
Quale ranks #33,142 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.25 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 741 people with the surname Quale. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (850), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.25 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.25 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Quale.
Has Quale become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Quale went from 749 recorded bearers to 741. That is a decrease of 8 (-1.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #31,001 to #33,142.
What does the Census say about the background of Quale?
Among Census respondents with the surname Quale, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Quale in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.7% (687 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Quale appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.7%), Hispanic (2.2%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Quale (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 Quale mean?
A surname derived from the Italian word 'quale' meaning 'which' or 'what'. 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 Quale (0.25 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 have the surname Quale?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.