2000
#425
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 69,279
First available Census row
Per 100,000 25.68
Uncommon Last name
Blake
An English surname derived from Old English blæc, meaning "black," referring to a person with dark hair or complexion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 81,905 Americans carry the last name Blake. That puts it at #450 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 23.90 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,185 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Blake 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 Blake with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
82K
1 in 4,185
Census rank
#450
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
23.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
71K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 71,425 bearers of the surname Blake in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 23.90 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 450th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Blake, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.0%. The next largest groups are Black (22.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Blake
The surname Blake has its origins in the British Isles, specifically in England and Ireland. It is thought to have derived from the Old English word "blæc," meaning "black" or "dark-complexioned." This suggests that the name may have originally been a nickname given to someone with dark features.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Blake can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Blac" and "Blache." This comprehensive survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror provides evidence of the name's existence in the 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, the name was prevalent in various regions of England, including Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Devon. It is believed that the Blake family had a stronghold in the village of Calne, Wiltshire, where they held significant land and influence.
The name Blake has also been associated with several notable figures throughout history. One of the earliest was Humphrey Blake (c. 1480-1545), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Gloucester during the reign of Henry VIII.
In the 17th century, Robert Blake (1598-1657) was a prominent English admiral who played a crucial role in the Anglo-Dutch Wars and the establishment of England as a naval power. He is widely regarded as one of the most important military commanders in English history.
Another notable figure was William Blake (1757-1827), the renowned English poet, painter, and printmaker. His works, including Songs of Innocence and Experience and The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, have had a profound influence on literature and art.
The name Blake has also been associated with places, such as Blake's Cottage in Somerset, which was the birthplace of the poet Robert Blake, and Blake's Hill in Gloucestershire, which may have been named after a local landowner.
Other notable individuals with the surname Blake include Joaquin Blake (1759-1827), a Spanish naval officer and explorer who conducted extensive surveys of the Pacific Northwest coast, and Thomas Blake Glover (1838-1911), a British merchant and diplomat who played a significant role in the industrialization of Japan during the Meiji era.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Blake
Among Census respondents with the surname Blake, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.0%. The next largest groups are Black (22.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Blake 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 Blake surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White68.0% · 48,564
- Black or African American22.4% · 16,018
- Two or more races4.3% · 3,077
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 2,741
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 531
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 494
Timeline
Historical Census data for Blake
Blake 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
#447
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 73,797
+4,518 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 25.02
Rank movement Down 22 places
2020
#450
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 71,425
-2,372 bearers (-3.2%)
Per 100,000 23.90
Rank movement Down 3 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #425 | 69,279 | 25.68 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #447 | 73,797 | 25.02 | +4,518 bearers (+6.5%) | Down 22 places |
| 2020 | #450 | 71,425 | 23.90 | -2,372 bearers (-3.2%) | Down 3 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 Blake 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 | #447 | #450 | -0.7% |
| Count | 73,797 | 71,425 | -3.2% |
| Per 100K | 25.02 | 23.90 | -4.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Blake bearers went from 73,797 to 71,425 (-3.2% change). The surname moved down 3 positions in the national ranking, going from #447 to #450.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Blake
FAQ
Blake surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Blake?
Name Census estimates that about 81,905 living Americans carry the surname Blake. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,185 residents.
How common is Blake?
Blake ranks #450 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 23.90 per 100,000 residents, which is about 24 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 71,425 people with the surname Blake. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (81,905), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 23.9 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 23.90 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 24 of them to have the surname Blake.
Has Blake become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Blake went from 73,797 recorded bearers to 71,425. That is a decrease of 2,372 (-3.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #447 to #450.
What does the Census say about the background of Blake?
Among Census respondents with the surname Blake, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.0%. The next largest groups are Black (22.4%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Blake in the 2020 Census, accounting for 68.0% (48,564 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Blake appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (68.0%), Black (22.4%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Blake (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 Blake mean?
An English surname derived from Old English blæc, meaning "black," referring to a person with dark hair or complexion. 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 Blake (23.90 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 common is the surname Blake?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Blake, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.