2000
#4,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,264
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.69
Rare Last name
Wallen
Derived from a place name meaning "dweller by a stone bank or spring" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,821 Americans carry the last name Wallen. That puts it at #4,987 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.28 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 43,825 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wallen 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 Wallen with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.8K
1 in 43,825
Census rank
#4,987
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,820 bearers of the surname Wallen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.28 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4987th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wallen, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wallen
The surname Wallen originated in England during the medieval period, derived from the Old English words "walh" or "wallae," meaning "foreigner" or "stranger." It was likely used as a descriptive name for someone who had come from another region or country.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wallen can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Walensis," referring to people of Welsh descent living in England. This suggests that the name may have initially been used to identify individuals of Welsh origin.
During the 13th century, the name Wallen began to appear in various forms, such as "Waleys," "Wallensis," and "Wallon," in various parts of England, particularly in the counties of Worcestershire, Warwickshire, and Staffordshire. These variations likely resulted from regional dialects and spelling variations.
In the 14th century, the name Wallen was associated with several notable individuals, including John Wallen (c. 1320-1389), a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of London. Another notable figure was Sir Thomas Wallen (c. 1350-1420), a knight and landowner from Worcestershire.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Wallen continued to be found in various parts of England, with some variations in spelling, such as "Wallin" and "Wallens." One notable bearer of the name from this period was William Wallen (c. 1570-1640), a Puritan minister and author from Gloucestershire.
As the centuries progressed, the name Wallen spread across England and beyond, with bearers of the name found in various professions and walks of life. Some notable individuals with the surname Wallen include John Wallen (1771-1854), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars, and Henry Wallen (1819-1893), an English architect and surveyor known for his work on several churches and public buildings.
Other notable figures with the surname Wallen include Arthur Wallen (1865-1948), a British civil engineer and inventor of the Wallen process for purifying sewage, and Sir Henry Wallen (1887-1965), a British diplomat and author who served as Ambassador to Turkey and Spain.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wallen
Among Census respondents with the surname Wallen, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Wallen 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 Wallen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.0% · 5,731
- Black or African American5.8% · 395
- Two or more races4.4% · 298
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 236
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 86
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 74
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wallen
Wallen 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
#4,763
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,436
+172 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 2.52
Rank movement Down 268 places
2020
#4,987
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,820
-616 bearers (-8.3%)
Per 100,000 2.28
Rank movement Down 224 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,495 | 7,264 | 2.69 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,763 | 7,436 | 2.52 | +172 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 268 places |
| 2020 | #4,987 | 6,820 | 2.28 | -616 bearers (-8.3%) | Down 224 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 Wallen 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 | #4,763 | #4,987 | -4.7% |
| Count | 7,436 | 6,820 | -8.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.52 | 2.28 | -9.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wallen bearers went from 7,436 to 6,820 (-8.3% change). The surname moved down 224 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,763 to #4,987.
FAQ
Wallen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wallen?
Name Census estimates that about 7,821 living Americans carry the surname Wallen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 43,825 residents.
How common is Wallen?
Wallen ranks #4,987 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.28 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 6,820 people with the surname Wallen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,821), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.28 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.28 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 Wallen.
Has Wallen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wallen went from 7,436 recorded bearers to 6,820. That is a decrease of 616 (-8.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,763 to #4,987.
What does the Census say about the background of Wallen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wallen, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Wallen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (5,731 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wallen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.0%), Black (5.8%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Wallen (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 Wallen mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "dweller by a stone bank or spring" in Old English. 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 Wallen (2.28 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 are called Wallen?
See how many Americans have the surname Wallen on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.