Find out how popular the last name Spalding is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Spalding.

Spalding, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Spalding surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Spalding in America

Spalding is the 4125th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Spalding surname appeared 8,601 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Spalding.

We can also compare 2010 data for Spalding to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name 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.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Spalding

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Spalding.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Spalding was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Spalding has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Spalding was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Spalding, please contact us.

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