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Ba Family History

Ba Name Meaning

West African (mainly Senegal and Mauritania): Fulani name from the Mandinka adjective ba(a) ‘big great’. Compare Bah 1 see also Balde Muslim: abstracted as a surname from a dialect form of Arabic Abu ‘father’ used in compound surnames such as Bā Wazīr and Bā Ṭarafi. Vietnamese (): from the Chinese surname 柏 see Bai 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. Amerindian (mainly Guatemala; also ): Mayan name from ba(h) ‘gopher’.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Bo, Ma, Bai, Bu, Bao, Na, Bi, Ban, Lu, Du

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Where is the Ba family from?

You can see how Ba families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Ba family name was found in the USA, Canada, and Scotland between 1871 and 1920. The most Ba families were found in USA in 1880. In 1880 there were 10 Ba families living in Iowa. This was about 48% of all the recorded Ba's in USA. Iowa had the highest population of Ba families in 1880.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Ba surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Ba ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Housework were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Ba. 50% of Ba men worked as a Farmer and 37% of Ba women worked as a Housework. Some less common occupations for Americans named Ba were Baber and Housewife. .

View Census Data for Ba | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Farmer
    50%
  • Labor
    19%
  • Laborer
    19%
  • Baber
    13%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Housework
    37%
  • Weaver
    28%
  • Housekeeper
    19%
  • Housewife
    19%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Ba family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 29,000 census records available for the last name Ba. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Ba census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search US census records for Ba

Passenger Lists

There are 4,000 immigration records available for the last name Ba. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Ba immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 33,000 military records available for the last name Ba. For the veterans among your Ba ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Ba military records

You've only scratched the surface of Ba family history

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What is the average Ba lifespan?

Between 1979 and 2002, in the United States, Ba life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1979, and highest in 1988. The average life expectancy for Ba in 1979 was 31, and 33 in 2002.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Ba

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