2000
#99,214
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 169
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Babis
A surname of Greek origin, derived from the personal name "Babis" meaning "of the royal court".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 167 Americans carry the last name Babis. That puts it at #123,817 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,052,421 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Babis 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
167
1 in 2,052,421
Census rank
#123,817
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
146
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 146 bearers of the surname Babis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 123817th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Babis, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Black (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Babis
The surname "BABIS" is of Greek origin, and it can be traced back to the Byzantine period (around the 4th to 15th centuries). The name is derived from the Greek word "babas," which means "father" or "priest." It is believed that the name was initially given to the sons of priests or clergymen.
In ancient Greek manuscripts and records, the name "BABIS" appeared in various spellings, such as "Babas," "Babis," and "Babys." One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in a Byzantine document from the 9th century, which mentions a person named "Konstantinos Babis."
During the Ottoman period (1299-1923), the name "BABIS" was commonly used in regions of Greece that were under Ottoman rule, particularly in the Peloponnese and the Aegean Islands. It is also possible that the name spread to other parts of the Ottoman Empire, such as Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey) and the Balkans.
Notable individuals with the surname "BABIS" throughout history include:
1. Georgios Babis (1785-1851), a Greek revolutionary and military leader who fought against the Ottoman Empire during the Greek War of Independence.
2. Konstantinos Babis (1910-1988), a Greek painter and sculptor known for his abstract and surrealist works.
3. Ioannis Babis (1921-2004), a Greek playwright and screenwriter who wrote several plays and screenplays for Greek cinema.
4. Pavlos Babis (1930-2012), a Greek politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece from 1981 to 1985.
5. Alexandros Babis (1962-present), a Greek-Czech businessman and politician who served as the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic from 2017 to 2021.
The name "BABIS" has also been associated with various place names in Greece, such as the village of Babis in the Peloponnese region, and the Babis River, a tributary of the Evrotas River in Laconia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Babis
Among Census respondents with the surname Babis, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Black (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Babis 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 Babis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.0% · 130
- Black or African American3.4% · 5
- Two or more races3.4% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.4% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Babis
Babis 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
#119,508
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 145
-24 bearers (-14.2%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 20,294 places
2020
#123,817
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 146
+1 bearers (+0.7%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 4,309 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #99,214 | 169 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #119,508 | 145 | 0.05 | -24 bearers (-14.2%) | Down 20,294 places |
| 2020 | #123,817 | 146 | 0.05 | +1 bearers (+0.7%) | Down 4,309 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 Babis 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 | #119,508 | #123,817 | -3.6% |
| Count | 145 | 146 | 0.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.05 | -2.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Babis bearers went from 145 to 146 (+0.7% change). The surname moved down 4,309 positions in the national ranking, going from #119,508 to #123,817.
FAQ
Babis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Babis?
Name Census estimates that about 167 living Americans carry the surname Babis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,052,421 residents.
How common is Babis?
Babis ranks #123,817 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 146 people with the surname Babis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (167), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Babis.
Has Babis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Babis went from 145 recorded bearers to 146. That is an increase of 1 (+0.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #119,508 to #123,817.
What does the Census say about the background of Babis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Babis, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Black (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Babis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.0% (130 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Babis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.0%), Black (3.4%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Babis (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 Babis mean?
A surname of Greek origin, derived from the personal name "Babis" meaning "of the royal court". 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 Babis (0.05 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 Babis?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Babis on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.