Basil Rathbone
There are approximately 1 people named Basil Rathbone living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Basil with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Rathbone. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census demographics where available.
Expected bearers
1
1 in 342,754,338
Named Basil
6.2K
Alive today
Named Rathbone
2.4K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 6.2K
Rarity: Rare
Gender: Male
Peak year: 1924
Average age: 48
Top Census group: White (61.9%)
Estimated bearers: 2.4K
Rarity: Rare
Census rank: #13,614
Per 100K: 0.71
Top ancestry: White (91.5%)
First name trend
Basil: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Basil. The peak year was 1924 with 281 births. The average person named Basil today is 48 years old.
Babies born per year
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Basil
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the first name Basil, from the 2020 US Census Bureau first-name tables. The largest published group is White at 61.9%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Basil described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the name Basil at the time of the Census. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White61.9% · 4,844
- Black or African American23.4% · 1,828
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.9% · 462
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 309
- Two or more races3.6% · 285
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 98
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Rathbone surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Rathbone, from the 2020 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 91.5%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the surname Rathbone described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the surname Rathbone at the time of the Census. A surname does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White91.5% · 1,949
- Two or more races4.0% · 85
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 50
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 16
- Black or African American0.5% · 11
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Basil has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0018% of the US population, based on 6,179 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
Even though the Census Bureau now publishes first-name tables, we do not use that file as the main first-name input for this estimate. The latest first-name Census snapshot is from 2020, which makes it 6 years old today. Because Census first-name data is only released once every 10 years, SSA birth records plus CDC survival rates give a better current estimate of how many people are likely alive with the name Basil right now.
The surname Rathbone appears at a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents in the 2020 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0007%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 1 people with the full name Basil Rathbone. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Basil
FAQ
Basil Rathbone: questions and answers
How many people are named Basil Rathbone?
We estimate approximately 1 people in the United States share the full name Basil Rathbone. That works out to about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0018%) with the surname frequency (0.71 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Basil Rathbone?
We classify Basil Rathbone as "Very Rare". About 1 in 342,754,338 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Basil a male or female name?
Basil is predominantly male. Out of 13,438 total SSA registrations, 97.4% were male and 2.6% were female. See the full Basil profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2020 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.
How common is the name Basil Rathbone?
If you just want to know how many people are called Basil Rathbone, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.