2000
#3,905
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,363
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.10
Rare Last name
Barnette
A diminutive of the surname Barnett, meaning "son of Bernard" or "brave as a bear."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,612 Americans carry the last name Barnette. That puts it at #4,110 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 35,659 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Barnette 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
9.6K
1 in 35,659
Census rank
#4,110
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,382 bearers of the surname Barnette in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4110th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Barnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.8%. The next largest groups are Black (16.1%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Barnette
The surname Barnette originated in England, deriving from the Old English words "bærn" meaning "barn" or "child" and "ætt" meaning "family" or "descent." It is believed to have first emerged in the 12th or 13th century as a descriptive name for someone associated with a barn or perhaps a child born in a barn.
The earliest recorded examples of the name date back to the 13th century, appearing in various forms such as Barnett, Barnet, and Bernette. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Barnett, mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1207.
In the 14th century, the name appears in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire, where a Robert Barnette is listed. The Barnette spelling is also found in the Subsidy Rolls of Suffolk in 1524, suggesting its use in different parts of England.
The name has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Sir John Barnett, a 14th-century English knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War. Another was Sir John Barnett (c. 1570-1642), an English politician who served as a member of Parliament during the reign of Charles I.
In the 17th century, John Barnette (1624-1685) was an English Quaker missionary who traveled to the American colonies and helped establish Quaker communities in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. During the same period, Thomas Barnette (c. 1630-1700) was a prominent landowner and member of the Virginia House of Burgesses.
In the 18th century, Samuel Barnette (1720-1792) was a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the American Revolutionary War. He is notable for his role in the Battle of Yorktown, which effectively ended the war.
The name has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Barnett Wood in Gloucestershire and Barnett's Close in Norfolk, further reflecting its historical roots in the country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Barnette
Among Census respondents with the surname Barnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.8%. The next largest groups are Black (16.1%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Barnette 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 Barnette surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.8% · 6,438
- Black or African American16.1% · 1,349
- Two or more races3.7% · 308
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 215
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 44
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 28
Timeline
Historical Census data for Barnette
Barnette 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
#4,178
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,480
+117 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 2.87
Rank movement Down 273 places
2020
#4,110
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,382
-98 bearers (-1.2%)
Per 100,000 2.80
Rank movement Up 68 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,905 | 8,363 | 3.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,178 | 8,480 | 2.87 | +117 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 273 places |
| 2020 | #4,110 | 8,382 | 2.80 | -98 bearers (-1.2%) | Up 68 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 Barnette 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 | #4,178 | #4,110 | 1.6% |
| Count | 8,480 | 8,382 | -1.2% |
| Per 100K | 2.87 | 2.80 | -2.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Barnette bearers went from 8,480 to 8,382 (-1.2% change). The surname moved up 68 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,178 to #4,110.
FAQ
Barnette surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Barnette?
Name Census estimates that about 9,612 living Americans carry the surname Barnette. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 35,659 residents.
How common is Barnette?
Barnette ranks #4,110 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.80 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,382 people with the surname Barnette. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,612), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.80 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Barnette.
Has Barnette become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Barnette went from 8,480 recorded bearers to 8,382. That is a decrease of 98 (-1.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #4,178 to #4,110.
What does the Census say about the background of Barnette?
Among Census respondents with the surname Barnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.8%. The next largest groups are Black (16.1%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Barnette in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.8% (6,438 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Barnette appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.8%), Black (16.1%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Barnette (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 Barnette mean?
A diminutive of the surname Barnett, meaning "son of Bernard" or "brave as a bear." 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 Barnette (2.80 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 Barnette?
Want to know how many people have the last name Barnette? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.