2000
#26,694
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 858
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.32
Very Rare Last name
Whalley
A topographic surname derived from a place name referring to someone from Whalley Valley or Whalley Town.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 961 Americans carry the last name Whalley. That puts it at #29,943 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.28 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 356,664 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Whalley 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 Whalley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
961
1 in 356,664
Census rank
#29,943
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
838
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 838 bearers of the surname Whalley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.28 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 29943rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Whalley, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Whalley
The surname Whalley is of English origin and dates back to at least the medieval period. It is a locational name deriving from the village of Whalley in Lancashire, England. The name Whalley is believed to have originated from the Old English elements "hwæl," meaning "a hill" and "léah," meaning "a woodland clearing," suggesting that Whalley originally meant "the woodland clearing by the hill."
Historical records show the surname Whalley appearing in various documents. For instance, the village of Whalley is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, a great survey of England ordered by King William the Conqueror. The varied spellings over time included "Wallege," "Waley," and "Wallei," reflecting the evolution of the English language and regional dialects.
One of the earliest records of the surname used in a personal context is Henry de Whalley, who is documented in Lancashire in the year 1246. Another notable historical figure is Richard Whalley, born in 1499 and died in 1583. He served as a Member of Parliament for Nottinghamshire. A third individual of note is Sir James Whalley, mentioned in historical records from the early 17th century, who was a notable English landowner.
In the 17th century, Edward Whalley, born in 1607 and died around 1675 in Massachusetts, was another prominent figure. He was a regicide, one of the judges who signed the death warrant for King Charles I, and later fled to North America following the restoration of the monarchy. Another remarkable person was Major-General Edward Whalley, born around 1615 and died in 1674, an English military leader during the Civil War and the Commonwealth period.
Throughout history, Whalley has consistently been linked to the Lancashire region and its surrounding areas, maintaining its roots in the north of England. The name's endurance through centuries underscores both its geographical and cultural significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Whalley
Among Census respondents with the surname Whalley, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Whalley 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 Whalley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.6% · 759
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 41
- Two or more races2.3% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 10
- Black or African American1.1% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Whalley
Whalley 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
#35,016
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 644
-214 bearers (-24.9%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Down 8,322 places
2020
#29,943
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 838
+194 bearers (+30.1%)
Per 100,000 0.28
Rank movement Up 5,073 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #26,694 | 858 | 0.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #35,016 | 644 | 0.22 | -214 bearers (-24.9%) | Down 8,322 places |
| 2020 | #29,943 | 838 | 0.28 | +194 bearers (+30.1%) | Up 5,073 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 Whalley 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 | #35,016 | #29,943 | 14.5% |
| Count | 644 | 838 | 30.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.22 | 0.28 | 27.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Whalley bearers went from 644 to 838 (+30.1% change). The surname moved up 5,073 positions in the national ranking, going from #35,016 to #29,943.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Whalley
FAQ
Whalley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Whalley?
Name Census estimates that about 961 living Americans carry the surname Whalley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 356,664 residents.
How common is Whalley?
Whalley ranks #29,943 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.28 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 838 people with the surname Whalley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (961), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.28 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.28 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 Whalley.
Has Whalley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Whalley went from 644 recorded bearers to 838. That is an increase of 194 (+30.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #35,016 to #29,943.
What does the Census say about the background of Whalley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Whalley, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Whalley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.6% (759 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Whalley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.6%), Hispanic (4.9%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Whalley (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 Whalley mean?
A topographic surname derived from a place name referring to someone from Whalley Valley or Whalley Town. 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 Whalley (0.28 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 Whalley?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.