2000
#5,776
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,493
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.04
Rare Last name
Sayles
An English occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of rope or cord.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,274 Americans carry the last name Sayles. That puts it at #6,037 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.83 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 54,631 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sayles 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 Sayles with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.3K
1 in 54,631
Census rank
#6,037
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,471 bearers of the surname Sayles in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.83 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6037th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sayles, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.8%. The next largest groups are Black (34.7%) and Two or More Races (6.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sayles
The surname SAYLES is of English origin and dates back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "sæl", meaning a hall or manor house. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived in or was associated with a particular hall or manor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1273, where it appears as "Hugo de la Sale". This entry provides evidence of the name's early spelling variations, which include Sale, Sayle, and Saylle.
The SAYLES surname is also linked to various place names in England, such as Sawley in Yorkshire, Salley in Norfolk, and Salehurst in Sussex. These place names may have influenced the development and spelling variations of the surname over time.
Notable historical figures with the SAYLES surname include John Sayles (1556-1631), an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works. Another prominent individual was Sir John Sayles (1617-1683), an English politician and judge who served as Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer.
During the 17th century, the SAYLES name appeared in the New World, with records indicating the presence of individuals such as Thomas Sayles, who settled in Virginia in 1623. In 1635, Robert Sayles arrived in Massachusetts, becoming one of the early settlers in the American colonies.
Other notable bearers of the SAYLES surname include John Sayles (born 1950), an American independent film director, writer, and actor known for his critically acclaimed works such as "Matewan" and "Lone Star". Additionally, there was Charles Sayles (1901-1964), an American baseball player who played for the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1920s.
The SAYLES name has also been associated with various professions throughout history, including military service. One example is Major General Wilton B. Sayles (1914-1989), a United States Air Force officer who served during World War II and the Vietnam War.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sayles
Among Census respondents with the surname Sayles, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.8%. The next largest groups are Black (34.7%) and Two or More Races (6.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Sayles 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 Sayles surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White53.8% · 2,945
- Black or African American34.7% · 1,900
- Two or more races6.1% · 336
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 217
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 41
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 32
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sayles
Sayles 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
#5,852
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,902
+409 bearers (+7.4%)
Per 100,000 2.00
Rank movement Down 76 places
2020
#6,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,471
-431 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 1.83
Rank movement Down 185 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,776 | 5,493 | 2.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,852 | 5,902 | 2.00 | +409 bearers (+7.4%) | Down 76 places |
| 2020 | #6,037 | 5,471 | 1.83 | -431 bearers (-7.3%) | Down 185 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 Sayles 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 | #5,852 | #6,037 | -3.2% |
| Count | 5,902 | 5,471 | -7.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.00 | 1.83 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sayles bearers went from 5,902 to 5,471 (-7.3% change). The surname moved down 185 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,852 to #6,037.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Sayles
FAQ
Sayles surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sayles?
Name Census estimates that about 6,274 living Americans carry the surname Sayles. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 54,631 residents.
How common is Sayles?
Sayles ranks #6,037 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.83 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,471 people with the surname Sayles. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,274), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.83 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.83 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Sayles.
Has Sayles become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sayles went from 5,902 recorded bearers to 5,471. That is a decrease of 431 (-7.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,852 to #6,037.
What does the Census say about the background of Sayles?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sayles, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.8%. The next largest groups are Black (34.7%) and Two or More Races (6.1%). 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 Sayles in the 2020 Census, accounting for 53.8% (2,945 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sayles appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (53.8%), Black (34.7%), Two or More Races (6.1%). 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 Sayles (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 Sayles mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of rope or cord. 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 Sayles (1.83 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 common is the surname Sayles?
Find out how common the surname Sayles is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.