How common is the surname Blair?

78,026 people in the United States had the surname Blair in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 3,957 Americans. It ranked 416th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Blair?

Linda Blair, American actress, followed by Selma Blair.

Where is the surname Blair most common?

Wikidata records people named Blair in the United States and the United Kingdom.

How do you pronounce Blair?

Blair is /bleɹ/, one syllable.

Is the surname Blair getting more or less common?

More common. 75,135 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 78,026 in 2010, up 3.8%.

Is Blair also a first name?

Yes. Blair is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Blair

A surname, carried by 78,026 people in the United States.

Pronounced /bleɹ/ 1 syllable Soundex B460 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Blair is more common than 99.7% of them.

Origin

From Scottish Gaelic blàr (“field, plain”).

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 78,026 people named Blair in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 3,957 Americans. That is up 3.8% since 2000, when the Census counted 75,135.

#416

rank among US surnames

78,026

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+3.8%

change since 2000 (was #380)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#407	Bowen	78,822	3,917
#408	Ochoa	78,677	3,924
#409	Dennis	78,482	3,934
#410	Robbins	78,381	3,939
#411	Liu	78,370	3,940
#412	Ramsey	78,350	3,941
#413	Francis	78,327	3,942

Who is named Blair

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

79% of people named Blair identified as white (not Hispanic), 15% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.5% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 79%
Black (not Hispanic) 15%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.5%
Two or more races 2.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.7%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.6%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Blairs

38 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Linda Blair
American actress, born 1959
Selma Blair
American actress (born 1972)
Bonnie Blair
American speed skater, born 1964
Betsy Blair
American actress (1923–2009)
Mary Blair
American artist (1911-1978)
Cherie Blair
British barrister and wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair (born 1954)
DeJuan Blair
American basketball player (born 1989)
Janet Blair
Actress (1921-2007)
John Blair Jr.
American politician, Founding Father and jurist, 1732–1800
Patricia Blair
American TV and film actress, 1931–2013
James Blair
American rower (1909–1992)
Jayson Blair
American actor, born 1984

Notable Blairs come mostly from the United States (35) and the United Kingdom (3).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Blaire
Blayre

Surnames that sound like Blair

Blair has the Soundex code B460, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code B460.

Questions

Where does the surname Blair come from?: From Scottish Gaelic blàr (“field, plain”).
How common is the surname Blair?: 78,026 people in the United States had the surname Blair in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 3,957 Americans. It ranked 416th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Blair?: In the 2010 Census, 79% of people named Blair identified as white (not Hispanic), and 15% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Blair?: Linda Blair, American actress, followed by Selma Blair.
Where is the surname Blair most common?: Wikidata records people named Blair in the United States and the United Kingdom.
How do you pronounce Blair?: Blair is /bleɹ/, one syllable.
Is the surname Blair getting more or less common?: More common. 75,135 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 78,026 in 2010, up 3.8%.
What are other spellings of Blair?: Blaire and Blayre.
Is Blair also a first name?: Yes. Blair is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.