How common is the surname Day?

105,091 people in the United States had the surname Day in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 2,938 Americans. It ranked 294th of 162,253 surnames.

What ethnicity is the surname Day?

In the 2010 Census, 83% of people named Day identified as white (not Hispanic), and 10% as Black (not Hispanic).

Who is the most famous person named Day?

Doris Day, American actress and singer (1922–2019), followed by Dorothy Day.

Where is the surname Day most common?

Wikidata records people named Day in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia and 3 other countries.

Is the surname Day getting more or less common?

More common. 101,676 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 105,091 in 2010, up 3.4%.

The surname Day

A patronymic surname, carried by 105,091 people in the United States.

Pronounced /deɪ/ 1 syllable Soundex D000

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Day is more common than 99.8% of them.

Origin

This surname has multiple origins. Besides the ones listed below, Norman origin has also been suggested from De Haie", or "a corruption of the Normandy French D'Ossone, from the town of Ossone, in Normandy".

Day is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 105,091 people named Day in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 2,938 Americans. That is up 3.4% since 2000, when the Census counted 101,676.

#294

rank among US surnames

105,091

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+3.4%

change since 2000 (was #271)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#285	Rojas	108,421	2,848
#286	Lucas	107,690	2,867
#287	Márquez	107,533	2,871
#288	Fields	107,522	2,871
#289	Park	106,696	2,894
#290	Yang	106,033	2,912
#291	Little	105,936	2,914

Who is named Day

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

83% of people named Day identified as white (not Hispanic), 10% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 83%
Black (not Hispanic) 10%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.4%
Two or more races 2.0%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1.1%
Asian and Pacific Islander 1.0%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Days

42 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Doris Day
American actress and singer (1922–2019)
Dorothy Day
American journalist, social activist, and Catholic convert (1897-1980)
Sandra Day O'Connor
American lawyer and jurist (1930–2023)
Charlie Day
American actor, writer and producer (born 1976)
Andra Day
American singer, born 1984
Felicia Day
American actress, born 1979
Laraine Day
American actress (1920–2007)
Marceline Day
American actress (1908–2000)
Kayla Day
American female tennis player, born 1999
Lynda Day George
American actress, born 1944
Ellen Day Hale
American Impressionist painter (1855-1940)
Charles Day
American rower (1914–1962)

Notable Days come mostly from the United States (33), the United Kingdom (3) and Australia (3).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Day

Day has the Soundex code D000, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code D000.

Questions

Where does the surname Day come from?: This surname has multiple origins. Besides the ones listed below, Norman origin has also been suggested from De Haie", or "a corruption of the Normandy French D'Ossone, from the town of Ossone, in Normandy".
How common is the surname Day?: 105,091 people in the United States had the surname Day in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 2,938 Americans. It ranked 294th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Day?: In the 2010 Census, 83% of people named Day identified as white (not Hispanic), and 10% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Day?: Doris Day, American actress and singer (1922–2019), followed by Dorothy Day.
Where is the surname Day most common?: Wikidata records people named Day in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia and 3 other countries.
How do you pronounce Day?: Day is /deɪ/, one syllable.
What type of surname is Day?: Day is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Day getting more or less common?: More common. 101,676 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 105,091 in 2010, up 3.4%.