2000
#1,774
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,527
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.87
Uncommon Last name
Spaulding
An occupational surname referring to someone who made wooden bowls and dishes, derived from the Old English "spald."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 20,829 Americans carry the last name Spaulding. That puts it at #1,937 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 16,456 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spaulding 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
21K
1 in 16,456
Census rank
#1,937
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
18K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 18,164 bearers of the surname Spaulding in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1937th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spaulding, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.1%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spaulding
The surname Spaulding is of English origin and dates back to the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English word "spald," meaning a chip or splinter of wood, and the suffix "-ing," denoting a place name. This suggests that the name may have originated from a location where wood-chipping or wood-splitting activities took place.
Historically, the Spaulding surname has been recorded in various spellings, including Spalding, Spaldyng, Spalden, and Spaldene. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1202, where it is spelled "Spaldelinges."
The Spaulding surname is closely associated with the town of Spalding in Lincolnshire, England. This town's name is believed to have derived from the Old English words "spald" and "ing," meaning the dwellers by the split wood or chip wood. The town of Spalding is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, further solidifying the connection between the surname and the location.
One of the earliest known individuals with the Spaulding surname was William de Spaldyng, who was recorded in the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1273. Another notable figure was Sir Edmund Spaulding, a member of the English gentry in the 15th century, who served as a knight during the Wars of the Roses.
In the 16th century, Edward Spaulding, born in 1550, was a prominent figure in the wool trade in Lincolnshire. His descendant, Edward Spaulding, born in 1619, was one of the early settlers in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in America, arriving in 1630 and establishing the Spaulding family in the New World.
Among the notable individuals with the Spaulding surname is John Spaulding, an American Baptist minister and author born in 1766. He is best known for his fictional work "The Manuscript Found," which some believe inspired the Book of Mormon.
Another prominent figure was Solomon Spaulding, born in 1761, an American writer and novelist who wrote a manuscript titled "The Manuscript Story," which some have speculated was the basis for the Book of Mormon, although this claim remains controversial.
In the field of sports, Albert Spaulding, born in 1850, was a prominent American businessman and sports pioneer who co-founded the Spalding sporting goods company, which became a leading manufacturer of athletic equipment.
The Spaulding surname has a rich history spanning centuries, with its origins deeply rooted in the English language and place names, and has been carried by individuals who have made significant contributions in various fields throughout the years.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spaulding
Among Census respondents with the surname Spaulding, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.1%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Spaulding 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 Spaulding surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.5% · 14,627
- Black or African American9.1% · 1,650
- Two or more races4.5% · 826
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 613
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 292
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 156
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spaulding
Spaulding 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
#1,899
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,902
+375 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 6.41
Rank movement Down 125 places
2020
#1,937
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,164
-738 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 6.08
Rank movement Down 38 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,774 | 18,527 | 6.87 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,899 | 18,902 | 6.41 | +375 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 125 places |
| 2020 | #1,937 | 18,164 | 6.08 | -738 bearers (-3.9%) | Down 38 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 Spaulding 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 | #1,899 | #1,937 | -2.0% |
| Count | 18,902 | 18,164 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 6.41 | 6.08 | -5.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spaulding bearers went from 18,902 to 18,164 (-3.9% change). The surname moved down 38 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,899 to #1,937.
FAQ
Spaulding surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spaulding?
Name Census estimates that about 20,829 living Americans carry the surname Spaulding. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 16,456 residents.
How common is Spaulding?
Spaulding ranks #1,937 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.08 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 18,164 people with the surname Spaulding. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (20,829), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.08 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Spaulding.
Has Spaulding become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spaulding went from 18,902 recorded bearers to 18,164. That is a decrease of 738 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,899 to #1,937.
What does the Census say about the background of Spaulding?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spaulding, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.1%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Spaulding in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.5% (14,627 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spaulding appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.5%), Black (9.1%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Spaulding (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 Spaulding mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who made wooden bowls and dishes, derived from the Old English "spald." 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 Spaulding (6.08 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 last name Spaulding?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Spaulding is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.