2000
#1,766
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,600
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.89
Uncommon Last name
Paige
An occupational surname referring to a young servant or page.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 22,397 Americans carry the last name Paige. That puts it at #1,796 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.53 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 15,304 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Paige 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 Paige with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
22K
1 in 15,304
Census rank
#1,796
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
20K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 19,531 bearers of the surname Paige in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.53 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1796th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Paige, the largest self-reported group is Black at 51.3%. The next largest groups are White (38.7%) and Two or More Races (5.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Paige
The surname Paige has its roots in medieval England, originating from the Old French word "page," which referred to a young male attendant or servant to a person of rank or nobility. This name likely emerged during the Norman Conquest of England in the 11th century, as many French words and names were introduced into the English language.
In its earliest recorded instances, the name appeared in various spellings, such as Pag, Pagg, and Pagge, reflecting the evolving nature of surnames during that period. One of the earliest documented references to the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1198, where a person named William Page is mentioned.
As surnames became more widespread and hereditary in the 13th and 14th centuries, the name Paige began to appear in various records and documents across England. For instance, the Hundred Rolls of 1273 mention a John le Page in Oxfordshire, and the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1327 include a reference to a William Payge.
Over time, the name Paige also developed associations with certain place names, particularly those derived from the Old English word "paeg," meaning a village or hamlet. Examples include Pagenhill in Sussex and Pagehurst in Kent, suggesting that some individuals may have adopted the surname based on their place of origin or residence.
Several notable individuals have borne the surname Paige throughout history. One of the earliest recorded figures was John Paige (c. 1560-1624), an English churchman and academic who served as the Regius Professor of Hebrew at the University of Cambridge. Another prominent figure was Robert Paige (1619-1663), an English Puritan clergyman and author who emigrated to New England and became a minister in Boston.
In the realm of literature, Thomas Paige (1822-1898) was an American historian and genealogist, best known for his work on the history of Cambridge, Massachusetts. William Paige (1852-1936) was a British artist and illustrator, renowned for his paintings depicting scenes from rural England.
Closer to modern times, Satchel Paige (1906-1982) was an exceptional American baseball player in the Negro Leagues and later the Major Leagues, known for his longevity and pitching prowess. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971, a testament to his remarkable career.
While these are just a few examples, the surname Paige has a rich and diverse history, rooted in the medieval period and spanning various fields, from religion and academia to art and sports.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Paige
Among Census respondents with the surname Paige, the largest self-reported group is Black at 51.3%. The next largest groups are White (38.7%) and Two or More Races (5.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Paige 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 Paige surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American51.3% · 10,028
- White38.7% · 7,566
- Two or more races5.5% · 1,066
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 679
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 115
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 77
Timeline
Historical Census data for Paige
Paige 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
#1,789
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,063
+1,463 bearers (+7.9%)
Per 100,000 6.80
Rank movement Down 23 places
2020
#1,796
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,531
-532 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 6.53
Rank movement Down 7 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,766 | 18,600 | 6.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,789 | 20,063 | 6.80 | +1,463 bearers (+7.9%) | Down 23 places |
| 2020 | #1,796 | 19,531 | 6.53 | -532 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 7 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 Paige 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 | #1,789 | #1,796 | -0.4% |
| Count | 20,063 | 19,531 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 6.80 | 6.53 | -3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Paige bearers went from 20,063 to 19,531 (-2.7% change). The surname moved down 7 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,789 to #1,796.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Paige
FAQ
Paige surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Paige?
Name Census estimates that about 22,397 living Americans carry the surname Paige. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 15,304 residents.
How common is Paige?
Paige ranks #1,796 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.53 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 19,531 people with the surname Paige. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (22,397), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.53 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.53 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Paige.
Has Paige become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Paige went from 20,063 recorded bearers to 19,531. That is a decrease of 532 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,789 to #1,796.
What does the Census say about the background of Paige?
Among Census respondents with the surname Paige, the largest self-reported group is Black at 51.3%. The next largest groups are White (38.7%) and Two or More Races (5.5%). 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 Paige in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.3% (10,028 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Paige appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (51.3%), White (38.7%), Two or More Races (5.5%). 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 Paige (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 Paige mean?
An occupational surname referring to a young servant or page. 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 Paige (6.53 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 surname Paige?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.