2000
#115,489
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 140
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Begey
A surname derived from a place name, possibly referring to someone from Béguey, France.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124 Americans carry the last name Begey. That puts it at #150,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,764,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Begey 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
124
1 in 2,764,148
Census rank
#150,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
108
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108 bearers of the surname Begey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Begey, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (13.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Begey
The surname Begey is believed to have originated in the region of Normandy in northern France during the early medieval period. It is derived from the Old French word 'beguier', which means to stammer or stutter. This suggests that the name was likely a descriptive nickname given to an early bearer who had a speech impediment.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and landholdings in England conducted in 1086 by order of William the Conqueror. The entry mentions a landowner named Radulfus Begey, indicating that the name had already become a hereditary surname by the late 11th century.
In the 13th century, various spellings of the name, such as Beguey and Beguay, appear in records from the Normandy region, reflecting the linguistic evolution of the name over time. One notable bearer from this period was Jean Beguey, a prominent merchant and landowner who lived in the town of Caen during the 1240s.
As the name spread beyond its original homeland, it also took on localized variations. In England, for instance, the name was sometimes anglicized to Beggy or Beggey. One notable English bearer was Sir William Beggy, a knight who fought in the Wars of the Roses during the 15th century.
Over the centuries, the Begey surname has been associated with several notable individuals across various fields. In the 16th century, Pierre Begey (1510-1583) was a renowned French jurist and legal scholar who served as a magistrate in the Parlement of Paris. In the 18th century, Jean-Baptiste Begey (1723-1796) was a French architect who designed several notable buildings in Paris.
In more recent times, the name has been carried by individuals such as Louis Begey (1883-1945), a French artist and painter who was a member of the Fauvist movement, and André Begey (1901-1957), a French writer and journalist who was known for his travel writing and novels set in exotic locales.
While the name Begey is relatively uncommon today, it has a rich history that spans several centuries and reflects the diverse cultural influences that have shaped its evolution over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Begey
Among Census respondents with the surname Begey, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (13.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Begey 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 Begey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.3% · 91
- American Indian and Alaska Native13.0% · 14
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Begey
Begey 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
#150,452
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-31 bearers (-22.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 34,963 places
2020
#150,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 483 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #115,489 | 140 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #150,452 | 109 | 0.04 | -31 bearers (-22.1%) | Down 34,963 places |
| 2020 | #150,935 | 108 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 483 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 Begey 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 | #150,452 | #150,935 | -0.3% |
| Count | 109 | 108 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -9.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Begey bearers went from 109 to 108 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 483 positions in the national ranking, going from #150,452 to #150,935.
FAQ
Begey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Begey?
Name Census estimates that about 124 living Americans carry the surname Begey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,764,148 residents.
How common is Begey?
Begey ranks #150,935 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 108 people with the surname Begey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Begey.
Has Begey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Begey went from 109 recorded bearers to 108. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #150,452 to #150,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Begey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Begey, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (13.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Begey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.3% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Begey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.3%), American Indian/Alaska Native (13.0%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Begey (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 Begey mean?
A surname derived from a place name, possibly referring to someone from Béguey, France. 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 Begey (0.04 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 many Americans have the surname Begey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.