2000
#125,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 126
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Sallen
A surname derived from the Old English word "sallow", referring to a person with sallow or pale complexion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Sallen. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sallen 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Sallen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sallen, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.5%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sallen
The surname Sallen has its origins in France, dating back to the early 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old French word "saillir," meaning "to leap" or "to spring forth," suggesting that the name may have been originally used as a descriptive nickname for someone who was known for their agility or energetic nature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Cartulaire de l'abbaye de Redon, a collection of medieval charters and documents from the abbey of Redon in Brittany, where a certain Gaufridus Sallen is mentioned in a charter dated 1144.
In the 13th century, the name Sallen appeared in various records across northern France, particularly in the regions of Normandy and Picardy. For instance, a Guillelmus Sallen is listed in the Roles Gascons, a collection of records related to the English administration of Gascony, dated around 1273.
During the 14th century, the name Sallen began to spread further throughout France, with records showing individuals bearing the name in regions such as Anjou and Poitou. One notable figure from this period was Jean Sallen, a merchant from the city of Tours, who lived between 1320 and 1387.
In the 15th century, the surname Sallen gained prominence in the southern regions of France, particularly in Languedoc and Provence. A notable figure from this time was Nicolas Sallen, a renowned jurist and legal scholar born in Marseille in 1462, who served as a judge in the Parlement of Aix-en-Provence.
The 16th century saw the emergence of several notable individuals bearing the Sallen surname, including Jacques Sallen, a French Protestant theologian and writer who lived from 1515 to 1583, and Antoine Sallen, a painter and engraver from Lyon who was active in the late 16th century.
As the Sallen name spread across Europe, it also took on various spellings and variations, such as Sallens, Sallin, and Sallen, reflecting the regional dialects and linguistic influences of different areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sallen
Among Census respondents with the surname Sallen, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.5%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Sallen 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 Sallen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.6% · 92
- Black or African American14.5% · 17
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sallen
Sallen 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
#131,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
+3 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,740 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-12 bearers (-9.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,891 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #125,639 | 126 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #131,379 | 129 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 5,740 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-9.3%) | Down 12,891 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 Sallen 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 | #131,379 | #144,270 | -9.8% |
| Count | 129 | 117 | -9.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sallen bearers went from 129 to 117 (-9.3% change). The surname moved down 12,891 positions in the national ranking, going from #131,379 to #144,270.
FAQ
Sallen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sallen?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Sallen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Sallen?
Sallen ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 117 people with the surname Sallen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Sallen.
Has Sallen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sallen went from 129 recorded bearers to 117. That is a decrease of 12 (-9.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #131,379 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Sallen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sallen, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (14.5%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Sallen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.6% (92 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sallen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.6%), Black (14.5%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Sallen (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 Sallen mean?
A surname derived from the Old English word "sallow", referring to a person with sallow or pale complexion. 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 Sallen (0.04 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 are called Sallen?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Sallen, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.