2000
#3,905
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,363
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.10
Rare Last name
Spalding
A toponymic surname referring to someone from the town of Spalding in Lincolnshire, England, derived from a river name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,435 Americans carry the last name Spalding. That puts it at #4,168 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 36,328 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spalding 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 Spalding with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.4K
1 in 36,328
Census rank
#4,168
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,228 bearers of the surname Spalding in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4168th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spalding, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Black (6.2%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spalding
The surname Spalding is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the place name Spalding, a town in Lincolnshire, England. The place name itself is thought to come from the Old English words "spald" meaning a ridge or tongue of land, and "ing" meaning people or family.
Spalding was first recorded as a surname in the late 12th century, with one of the earliest known bearers being Robert de Spalding, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1195. The surname likely emerged as people from the town of Spalding began to adopt it as a hereditary name.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, the town of Spalding is referred to as "Spaldinghe," indicating the long history of the name's association with the area. Other early spellings of the surname include Spaldyng, Spaldynge, and Spaldinge.
One notable bearer of the Spalding surname was John Spalding (c. 1610-1669), a Scottish writer and lawyer who authored several works, including "Memoirs of the Trubles in Scotland and England." Another was Samuel Spalding (1714-1796), an American merchant and politician who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress.
In the 19th century, Benjamin Spalding (1781-1859) founded the sporting goods company that bears his surname, which became famous for producing high-quality baseballs and other athletic equipment. Albert Spalding (1850-1915), his son, was a renowned baseball player and promoter who played a significant role in establishing baseball as a popular American pastime.
Another prominent figure with the Spalding surname was John Franklin Spalding (1828-1902), an American Catholic bishop and author who served as the Bishop of Peoria, Illinois, and wrote extensively on religious and philosophical topics.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spalding
Among Census respondents with the surname Spalding, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Black (6.2%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Spalding 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 Spalding surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.3% · 7,020
- Black or African American6.2% · 514
- Two or more races3.6% · 293
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 273
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 67
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 61
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spalding
Spalding 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
#4,125
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,601
+238 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 2.92
Rank movement Down 220 places
2020
#4,168
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,228
-373 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 2.75
Rank movement Down 43 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,905 | 8,363 | 3.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,125 | 8,601 | 2.92 | +238 bearers (+2.8%) | Down 220 places |
| 2020 | #4,168 | 8,228 | 2.75 | -373 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 43 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 Spalding 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 | #4,125 | #4,168 | -1.0% |
| Count | 8,601 | 8,228 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.92 | 2.75 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spalding bearers went from 8,601 to 8,228 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 43 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,125 to #4,168.
FAQ
Spalding surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spalding?
Name Census estimates that about 9,435 living Americans carry the surname Spalding. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 36,328 residents.
How common is Spalding?
Spalding ranks #4,168 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.75 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,228 people with the surname Spalding. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,435), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.75 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Spalding.
Has Spalding become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spalding went from 8,601 recorded bearers to 8,228. That is a decrease of 373 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,125 to #4,168.
What does the Census say about the background of Spalding?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spalding, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Black (6.2%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Spalding in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.3% (7,020 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spalding appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.3%), Black (6.2%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Spalding (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 Spalding mean?
A toponymic surname referring to someone from the town of Spalding in Lincolnshire, England, derived from a river name. 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 Spalding (2.75 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 Spalding?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.