2000
#11,505
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,510
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.93
Rare Last name
Arnette
A French toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "little alder tree."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,721 Americans carry the last name Arnette. That puts it at #12,475 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 125,966 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Arnette surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 125,966
Census rank
#12,475
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,373 bearers of the surname Arnette in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12475th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Arnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (16.5%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Arnette
The surname Arnette is believed to have originated from the Old French word 'arnault', which means 'the ruler'. This name can be traced back to the 12th century in the Normandy region of France.
The earliest recorded spelling of the name was found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appeared as 'Arnald'. This was a record of landowners in England after the Norman Conquest in 1066.
During the Middle Ages, the name was commonly found in regions of northern France, particularly in the areas of Normandy, Brittany, and Picardy. Variations of the spelling included Arnault, Arnauld, and Arnaud.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Arnaut Daniel, a 12th-century Occitan troubadour and poet from the region of Aquitaine in southern France. He is considered one of the greatest lyric poets of the Middle Ages.
In the 13th century, the name was also found in England, where it was recorded as Arnald or Arnold. One notable person with this surname was Arnold of Villanova, a 13th-century Catalan philosopher, astronomer, and alchemist who was born in Valencia, Spain.
During the 16th century, the name Arnette began to appear in various regions of France, including the areas around Lyon and Marseille. One prominent figure with this surname was Antoine Arnauld, a 17th-century French philosopher, theologian, and mathematician who was a leading figure in the Jansenist movement.
In the 18th century, the surname Arnette was found in various parts of Europe, including France, England, and Germany. One notable bearer of the name was Johann Arndt, a 16th-century German Lutheran theologian and writer who was born in Ballenstädt, Anhalt.
Throughout history, there have been several other notable individuals with the surname Arnette, including Henri Arnault, a 19th-century French playwright and novelist, and Jeanine Arneau, a 20th-century French actress and singer.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Arnette
Among Census respondents with the surname Arnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (16.5%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Arnette bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Arnette surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.6% · 1,817
- Black or African American16.5% · 392
- Two or more races3.2% · 76
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 69
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Arnette
Arnette appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#12,231
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,544
+34 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Down 726 places
2020
#12,475
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,373
-171 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 0.79
Rank movement Down 244 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,505 | 2,510 | 0.93 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,231 | 2,544 | 0.86 | +34 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 726 places |
| 2020 | #12,475 | 2,373 | 0.79 | -171 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 244 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Arnette surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #12,231 | #12,475 | -2.0% |
| Count | 2,544 | 2,373 | -6.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.86 | 0.79 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Arnette bearers went from 2,544 to 2,373 (-6.7% change). The surname moved down 244 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,231 to #12,475.
FAQ
Arnette surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Arnette?
Name Census estimates that about 2,721 living Americans carry the surname Arnette. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 125,966 residents.
How common is Arnette?
Arnette ranks #12,475 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,373 people with the surname Arnette. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,721), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.79 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.79 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Arnette.
Has Arnette become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Arnette went from 2,544 recorded bearers to 2,373. That is a decrease of 171 (-6.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,231 to #12,475.
What does the Census say about the background of Arnette?
Among Census respondents with the surname Arnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.6%. The next largest groups are Black (16.5%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Arnette in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.6% (1,817 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Arnette appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.6%), Black (16.5%), Two or More Races (3.2%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Arnette (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Arnette mean?
A French toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "little alder tree." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Arnette (0.79 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Arnette?
If you just want to know how common the surname Arnette is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.