2000
#6,528
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,793
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.78
Rare Last name
Hardaway
Derived from a place name meaning "hardy way," referring to a robust or reliable path or road.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,538 Americans carry the last name Hardaway. That puts it at #6,713 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 61,891 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hardaway 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
5.5K
1 in 61,891
Census rank
#6,713
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,829 bearers of the surname Hardaway in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6713th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hardaway, the largest self-reported group is Black at 61.4%. The next largest groups are White (29.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hardaway
The surname Hardaway is believed to have originated in England, likely during the medieval period. It is thought to be a locational name, derived from a place name that incorporated the Old English words "hord" meaning a hoard or treasure, and "weg" meaning a way or road. This suggests the name may have referred to someone who lived near a road or path where valuables were hidden or stored.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which mention a John de Hordwey in Oxfordshire. This early spelling variation highlights the locational roots of the name. The Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1297 also include a reference to a William de Hordeway.
By the 16th century, the spelling had evolved closer to the modern form, as evidenced by records such as the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1554, which mention a William Hardaway. Other early bearers of the name include John Hardaway, who was listed in the Visitation of Somerset in 1623, and Edward Hardaway, whose son Thomas was baptized in St. Michael's Parish, Barbados, in 1678.
One notable individual with the Hardaway surname was Robert Hardaway, an English colonist who settled in Virginia in the 17th century. He was granted land in York County in 1635 and served as a member of the House of Burgesses.
Another historical figure was Thomas Hardaway, a British naval officer born in 1725. He served in the Royal Navy and rose to the rank of Admiral, commanding several ships during his career.
In the 19th century, William Armstrong Hardaway was a prominent lawyer and judge in Mississippi, born in 1816. He served as a circuit judge and was involved in several high-profile cases.
Among the more recent bearers of the name was Sir Cedric Hardwicke, an English actor born in 1893 and known for his roles in films such as The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Les Misérables. He was knighted in 1934 for his contributions to the stage and screen.
While the exact origins of the Hardaway surname may be obscured by time, its history can be traced back to medieval England, where it likely referred to a specific location associated with a hoard or treasure along a well-traveled road.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hardaway
Among Census respondents with the surname Hardaway, the largest self-reported group is Black at 61.4%. The next largest groups are White (29.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Hardaway 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 Hardaway surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American61.4% · 2,965
- White29.8% · 1,437
- Two or more races5.4% · 259
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 126
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hardaway
Hardaway 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
#6,562
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,163
+370 bearers (+7.7%)
Per 100,000 1.75
Rank movement Down 34 places
2020
#6,713
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,829
-334 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 1.62
Rank movement Down 151 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,528 | 4,793 | 1.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,562 | 5,163 | 1.75 | +370 bearers (+7.7%) | Down 34 places |
| 2020 | #6,713 | 4,829 | 1.62 | -334 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 151 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 Hardaway 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 | #6,562 | #6,713 | -2.3% |
| Count | 5,163 | 4,829 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.75 | 1.62 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hardaway bearers went from 5,163 to 4,829 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 151 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,562 to #6,713.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Hardaway
FAQ
Hardaway surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hardaway?
Name Census estimates that about 5,538 living Americans carry the surname Hardaway. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 61,891 residents.
How common is Hardaway?
Hardaway ranks #6,713 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.62 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 4,829 people with the surname Hardaway. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,538), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.62 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 Hardaway.
Has Hardaway become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hardaway went from 5,163 recorded bearers to 4,829. That is a decrease of 334 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,562 to #6,713.
What does the Census say about the background of Hardaway?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hardaway, the largest self-reported group is Black at 61.4%. The next largest groups are White (29.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Hardaway in the 2020 Census, accounting for 61.4% (2,965 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hardaway appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (61.4%), White (29.8%), Two or More Races (5.4%). 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 Hardaway (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 Hardaway mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "hardy way," referring to a robust or reliable path or road. 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 Hardaway (1.62 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 Hardaway?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Hardaway, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.