How Many People Are Named Michael Upshaw?

There are approximately 89 people named Michael Upshaw living in the United States today. That makes this name combination rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 3,851,172 Americans.

This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Michael with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Upshaw. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census background data where it is available.

Estimated People with This Name

1 in 3,851,172 Americans

Combination Rarity

Rare

Very Rare Very Common

First Name

View full profile

Michael

Est. Living 3,738,917

Last Name

Upshaw

Michael: Popularity Over Time

Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Michael. The peak year was 1957 with 93,041 births. The average person named Michael today is 50 years old.

Male

Female

Ancestry of the First Name Michael

In the 2020 Census, the first name Michael was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (79.02%). The next largest recorded groups were Black (7.89%) and Hispanic (7.79%).

These percentages describe the people who had the first name Michael in the 2020 Census. They do not tell you the deeper origin or meaning of the name itself.

Read this as a snapshot of who already had the name in 2020, not as a trend line. The SSA chart above is still the better way to see how Michael rose or fell over time.

White

79.02%

Black

7.89%

Hispanic

7.79%

Asian/Pacific Islander

1.91%

American Indian/Alaska Native

0.53%

Two or More Races

2.86%

Ancestry of the Upshaw Surname

The surname Upshaw was most commonly recorded among people who identified as Black in the 2020 Census.

This is a self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people who had the surname Upshaw in the published Census surname tables. It gives useful context around who was recorded with the name, but it does not tell the full family history of every Boone line.

White

31.58%

Black

54.02%

Hispanic

3.58%

Asian/Pacific Islander

0.31%

American Indian/Alaska Native

5.01%

Two or More Races

5.50%

How we calculated this

The first name "Michael" has an estimated frequency of 1.09% among living Americans, based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024 adjusted for mortality using CDC 2023 life tables.

The surname "Upshaw" appears at a rate of 2.38 per 100,000 people in the 2020 U.S. Census.

We do not use the Census first-name snapshot for the main estimate because it is only published once every 10 years. The latest public first-name Census file is from 2020, which is already 6 years old. SSA birth records plus CDC survival data give a better current estimate of how many people with the first name Michael are likely to be alive now.

Multiplying these frequencies against the U.S. population of ~343 million gives 89 estimated people. This assumes first names and last names are statistically independent. Full methodology.

Other people named Michael

Michael Smith Michael Johnson Michael Williams Michael Brown Michael Jones Michael Garcia Michael Miller Michael Rodriguez

Other people with the surname Upshaw

James Upshaw John Upshaw David Upshaw Robert Upshaw William Upshaw

Michael Upshaw: Questions and Answers

How many people are named Michael Upshaw?

We estimate approximately 89 people named Michael Upshaw are alive in the United States today. The first name Michael is shared by 3,738,917 Americans, and the surname Upshaw is shared by 8,167.

How rare is the name Michael Upshaw?

This name combination is classified as Rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 3,851,172 Americans. The first name Michael is very common and the surname Upshaw is rare.

Is Michael a male or female name?

Michael is predominantly male, with 99.5% of bearers being male and 0.5% female. It peaked in popularity in 1957 and the average bearer today is 50 years old.

What does the Census say about the first name Michael?

In the 2020 Census, the first name Michael was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (79.02%). The next largest recorded groups were Black (7.89%) and Hispanic (7.79%). These percentages describe the people who had the name in the 2020 Census, not the deeper origin of the name itself.

Where does this data come from?

First name data comes from the Social Security Administration (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables. When available, first-name Census background data comes from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau first-name tables. Surname data comes from the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau. Full methodology.

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