Elaine May
There are approximately 44 people named Elaine May living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 7,789,871 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Elaine with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname May. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census demographics where available.
Expected bearers
44
1 in 7,789,871
Named Elaine
128K
Alive today
Named May
116K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 128K
Rarity: Common
Gender: Female
Peak year: 1947
Average age: 63
Top Census group: White (77.0%)
Estimated bearers: 116K
Rarity: Common
Census rank: #304
Per 100K: 33.98
Top ancestry: White (80.4%)
First name trend
Elaine: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Elaine. The peak year was 1947 with 7,071 births. The average person named Elaine today is 63 years old.
Babies born per year
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Elaine
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the first name Elaine, from the 2020 US Census Bureau first-name tables. The largest published group is White at 77.0%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Elaine described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the name Elaine at the time of the Census. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White77.0% · 135,736
- Black or African American9.3% · 16,312
- Hispanic or Latino5.9% · 10,385
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.6% · 9,782
- Two or more races1.7% · 2,973
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 996
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the May surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname May, from the 2020 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 80.4%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the surname May described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the surname May at the time of the Census. A surname does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White80.4% · 81,656
- Black or African American9.4% · 9,573
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 4,105
- Two or more races3.8% · 3,878
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.5% · 1,564
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 795
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Elaine has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0374% of the US population, based on 128,300 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
Even though the Census Bureau now publishes first-name tables, we do not use that file as the main first-name input for this estimate. The latest first-name Census snapshot is from 2020, which makes it 6 years old today. Because Census first-name data is only released once every 10 years, SSA birth records plus CDC survival rates give a better current estimate of how many people are likely alive with the name Elaine right now.
The surname May appears at a rate of 33.98 per 100,000 residents in the 2020 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0340%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 44 people with the full name Elaine May. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Elaine
Related
Other people with the surname May
FAQ
Elaine May: questions and answers
How many people are named Elaine May?
We estimate approximately 44 people in the United States share the full name Elaine May. That works out to about 1 in 7,789,871 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0374%) with the surname frequency (33.98 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Elaine May?
We classify Elaine May as "Very Rare". About 1 in 7,789,871 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Elaine a male or female name?
Elaine is predominantly female. Out of 262,525 total SSA registrations, 0.2% were male and 99.8% were female. See the full Elaine profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2020 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.
How many people share the full name Elaine May?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.