2000
#12,058
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,375
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Spade
An occupational surname referring to someone who made shovels or dug ditches and trenches.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,684 Americans carry the last name Spade. That puts it at #12,598 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 127,703 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spade 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
2.7K
1 in 127,703
Census rank
#12,598
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,341 bearers of the surname Spade in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12598th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spade, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.4%) and Black (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spade
The surname SPADE is of Anglo-Saxon origin and dates back to the medieval era in England. It is derived from the Old English word 'spada', meaning a spade or shovel, which was likely an occupational name for someone who worked with spades or shovels, such as a digger or a farmer.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname SPADE appears in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire in 1273, where it is listed as 'Spade'. The Hundred Rolls were administrative records compiled in England during the reign of King Edward I.
In the 14th century, the name SPADE is found in various records, including the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, where it is recorded as 'Spade'. The Subsidy Rolls were tax records that listed individuals who were required to pay a tax to the crown.
The surname SPADE may also be related to the place name 'Spaden' in Shropshire, England, which is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086, the earliest surviving public record of England commissioned by William the Conqueror.
One notable individual with the surname SPADE was Sir Thomas Spade, a wealthy landowner and Member of Parliament for Worcestershire in the late 16th century, who lived from approximately 1540 to 1615.
Another prominent figure was John Spade, an English clergyman and author who lived from 1610 to 1670. He wrote several religious works, including "The Husbandman's Manual" and "The Poor Man's Jewel".
In the 18th century, William Spade, born in 1725, was a renowned clockmaker from London who made significant contributions to the field of horology.
The name SPADE also has connections to the Netherlands, where it is spelled as 'Spade'. One notable Dutch figure was Hendrik Spade, a 17th-century artist and engraver who was born in Amsterdam in 1628 and was known for his intricate etchings and engravings.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the surname SPADE was John Spade, who was born in England in 1650 and later immigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony in the late 17th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spade
Among Census respondents with the surname Spade, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.4%) and Black (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Spade 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 Spade surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.1% · 2,038
- Two or more races5.4% · 126
- Black or African American3.0% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 63
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 26
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spade
Spade 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
#12,264
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,536
+161 bearers (+6.8%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Down 206 places
2020
#12,598
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,341
-195 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 334 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,058 | 2,375 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,264 | 2,536 | 0.86 | +161 bearers (+6.8%) | Down 206 places |
| 2020 | #12,598 | 2,341 | 0.78 | -195 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 334 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 Spade 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 | #12,264 | #12,598 | -2.7% |
| Count | 2,536 | 2,341 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.86 | 0.78 | -8.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spade bearers went from 2,536 to 2,341 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 334 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,264 to #12,598.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Spade
FAQ
Spade surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spade?
Name Census estimates that about 2,684 living Americans carry the surname Spade. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 127,703 residents.
How common is Spade?
Spade ranks #12,598 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.78 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 2,341 people with the surname Spade. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,684), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.78 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 Spade.
Has Spade become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spade went from 2,536 recorded bearers to 2,341. That is a decrease of 195 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,264 to #12,598.
What does the Census say about the background of Spade?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spade, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.4%) and Black (3.0%). 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 Spade in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.1% (2,038 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spade appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.1%), Two or More Races (5.4%), Black (3.0%). 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 Spade (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 Spade mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who made shovels or dug ditches and trenches. 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 Spade (0.78 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 Spade?
See how common the surname Spade is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.