Explore the Family Name Ba
The meaning of Ba
1. West African (mainly Senegal and Mauritania): Fulani name, from the Mandinka adjective ba(a) ‘big, great’. Compare Bah 1, see also Balde 1. 2. Muslim: abstracted as a surname from bā, a dialect form of Arabic Abu ‘father’, used in compound surnames such as Bā Wazīr and Bā Ṭarafi. 3. Vietnamese (Bá): from the Chinese surname 柏, see Bai 2. 4. Chinese: Mandarin or Cantonese form of the surname 巴: (i) said to be borne by descendants of Fu Xi, a legendary king who lived prior to the Xia dynasty (i.e. before 2070 BC). (ii) from Ba (巴), the name of an ancient state (located in Sichuan province around the city of Chongqing), which was annihilated during the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BC). (iii) when Manchus and Mongolians came from the north to China several hundred years ago, many of them adopted the surname Ba. 5. Amerindian (mainly Guatemala; also Bá): Mayan name, from ba(h) ‘gopher’. Some characteristic forenames: African/Muslim Amadou, Ousmane, Demba, Mamadou, Daouda, Ibrahima, Mohamed, Thierno, Abdoul, Abdoulaye, Abou, Aissatou, Fatime, Fatou, Mame, Moussa, Oumar, Yassin. Vietnamese Dung, Thai Van, Tho, Thuy, Toan, Tong Van, Tran.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Ba in the United States?
According to the data derived from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Ba increased in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked 22,116 but rose dramatically to 12,627 by 2010, marking a significant change of 42.91%. The number of individuals with this surname also more than doubled during this period, growing from 1,091 in 2000 to 2,451 in 2010; an increase of 124.66%. Proportionally, for every 100,000 people in the United States, the number bearing the surname Ba grew from 0.4 to 0.83 during this decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #22,116 | #12,627 | 42.91% |
| Count | 1,091 | 2,451 | 124.66% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.4 | 0.83 | 107.5% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Ba
The ethnicity associated with the surname Ba also showed some changes over this ten-year period. As per the Decennial U.S. Census, in 2000, 55.73% identified as Black, which increased to 65.44% in 2010; an increase of 17.42%. There was a decrease in those identifying as White, down from 18.33% in 2000 to 14.12% in 2010. Similarly, the percentage of Asian or Pacific Islanders decreased from 14.3% to 12.73%. There was no record of those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native or Two or more races in 2010, while the Hispanic representation saw an emergence from 0% in 2000 to 4.81% in 2010.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 55.73% | 65.44% | 17.42% |
| White | 18.33% | 14.12% | -22.97% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 14.3% | 12.73% | -10.98% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 4.81% | 0% |
| Two or More Races | 7.52% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |