2000
#361
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 79,151
First available Census row
Per 100,000 29.34
Uncommon Last name
Baldwin
An English surname derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements bald, meaning "bold," and wine, meaning "friend."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 89,308 Americans carry the last name Baldwin. That puts it at #411 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 26.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,838 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Baldwin 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 Baldwin with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
89K
1 in 3,838
Census rank
#411
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
26.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
78K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 77,881 bearers of the surname Baldwin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 26.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 411th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldwin, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.1%. The next largest groups are Black (16.7%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Baldwin
The surname Baldwin is of Anglo-Saxon origin, deriving from the Old English words "bald" meaning bold or brave, and "wine" meaning friend or companion. It is believed to have originated in England during the early medieval period.
The name first appeared in written records in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was spelled "Balduinus". This suggests that the name was already well-established in England by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Baldwin was Baldwine de Brembre, a wealthy merchant and politician who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1384. Another notable early Baldwin was William Baldwin, an English author and playwright who lived from around 1515 to 1563.
In the 13th century, the surname Baldwin was also found in the form "Baldewin" in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire, indicating its continued presence in the region.
During the Middle Ages, the name Baldwin was often associated with places names such as Baldwin's Park in Buckinghamshire and Baldwin's Hill in West Sussex, further solidifying its connection to the English landscape.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the surname Baldwin, including:
1. Stanley Baldwin (1867-1947), British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1923 to 1924, and again from 1924 to 1929.
2. James Baldwin (1924-1987), an influential American novelist, playwright, and social critic known for works such as "Go Tell It on the Mountain" and "Notes of a Native Son".
3. Matthias William Baldwin (1795-1866), an American inventor and founder of the Baldwin Locomotive Works, which became one of the largest and most successful locomotive manufacturers in the world.
4. Alec Baldwin (born 1958), an American actor best known for films such as "The Departed", "The Cooler", and his portrayal of former President Donald Trump on "Saturday Night Live".
5. Roger Nash Baldwin (1884-1981), an American civil rights leader and co-founder of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Baldwin
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldwin, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.1%. The next largest groups are Black (16.7%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Baldwin 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 Baldwin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.1% · 57,705
- Black or African American16.7% · 13,043
- Two or more races4.0% · 3,147
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 2,799
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 637
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 550
Timeline
Historical Census data for Baldwin
Baldwin 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
#395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 80,742
+1,591 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 27.37
Rank movement Down 34 places
2020
#411
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 77,881
-2,861 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 26.06
Rank movement Down 16 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #361 | 79,151 | 29.34 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #395 | 80,742 | 27.37 | +1,591 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 34 places |
| 2020 | #411 | 77,881 | 26.06 | -2,861 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 16 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 Baldwin 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 | #395 | #411 | -4.1% |
| Count | 80,742 | 77,881 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 27.37 | 26.06 | -4.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Baldwin bearers went from 80,742 to 77,881 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 16 positions in the national ranking, going from #395 to #411.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Baldwin
FAQ
Baldwin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Baldwin?
Name Census estimates that about 89,308 living Americans carry the surname Baldwin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,838 residents.
How common is Baldwin?
Baldwin ranks #411 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 26.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 26 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 77,881 people with the surname Baldwin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (89,308), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 26.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 26.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 26 of them to have the surname Baldwin.
Has Baldwin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Baldwin went from 80,742 recorded bearers to 77,881. That is a decrease of 2,861 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #395 to #411.
What does the Census say about the background of Baldwin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Baldwin, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.1%. The next largest groups are Black (16.7%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Baldwin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.1% (57,705 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Baldwin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (74.1%), Black (16.7%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Baldwin (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 Baldwin mean?
An English surname derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements bald, meaning "bold," and wine, meaning "friend." 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 Baldwin (26.06 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 Baldwin?
You can see how many Americans have the surname Baldwin on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.