2000
#149,328
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Beleche
A variant spelling of the French surname Bélèche, likely denoting someone from a place of that name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 149 Americans carry the last name Beleche. That puts it at #134,631 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,300,365 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Beleche 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
149
1 in 2,300,365
Census rank
#134,631
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
130
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 130 bearers of the surname Beleche in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 134631st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Beleche, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 98.5%. The next largest groups are White (1.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Beleche
The surname Beleche is of French origin, first appearing in historical records during the 12th century. It is believed to have originated from the Old French words "bel" meaning beautiful and "leche" meaning tongue or language, possibly referring to an eloquent or well-spoken individual.
One of the earliest known references to the name Beleche can be found in the Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Saint-Père de Chartres, a collection of medieval charters from the Abbey of Saint-Père in Chartres, France, dated around 1170. This document mentions a certain "Robertus Beleche" who was a landowner in the region.
Another notable mention of the name Beleche is in the Livre des Bourgeois de Rouen, a registry of the bourgeois (middle-class citizens) of the city of Rouen, France, compiled in the late 13th century. It lists a "Jehan Beleche" as a merchant in the city.
In the 14th century, the name appears to have spread to other parts of France, with records indicating a "Guillaume Beleche" from the village of Vauvilliers in the Champagne region, and a "Marguerite Beleche" from the town of Beaune in Burgundy.
One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Beleche was Jean Beleche (1410-1482), a prominent lawyer and legal scholar from Paris. He served as a counselor to the Parlement of Paris and was known for his expertise in canon law.
Another notable figure was Pierre Beleche (1525-1598), a French botanist and physician from Orléans. He is best known for his work on medicinal plants and his contributions to the development of the field of pharmacognosy.
In the 17th century, the name Beleche appears in records from the region of Normandy, with a mention of a "Nicolas Beleche" (1620-1698) who was a wealthy landowner and vintner in the village of Beuzeville.
During the 18th century, the name Beleche gained some renown in the literary world with the writer and philosopher Jacques Beleche (1734-1810), born in Lyon. He was known for his essays on ethics and political philosophy, and was a member of the prestigious Académie des Sciences, Belles-Lettres et Arts de Lyon.
As the name Beleche spread throughout France over the centuries, variations in spelling emerged, such as Belèche, Beleshe, and Belaishe. However, the original form of Beleche remained the most common.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Beleche
Among Census respondents with the surname Beleche, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 98.5%. The next largest groups are White (1.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Beleche 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 Beleche surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino98.5% · 128
- White1.5% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Beleche
Beleche 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
#111,426
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 158
+57 bearers (+56.4%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 37,902 places
2020
#134,631
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
-28 bearers (-17.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 23,205 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #149,328 | 101 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #111,426 | 158 | 0.05 | +57 bearers (+56.4%) | Up 37,902 places |
| 2020 | #134,631 | 130 | 0.04 | -28 bearers (-17.7%) | Down 23,205 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 Beleche 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 | #111,426 | #134,631 | -20.8% |
| Count | 158 | 130 | -17.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Beleche bearers went from 158 to 130 (-17.7% change). The surname moved down 23,205 positions in the national ranking, going from #111,426 to #134,631.
FAQ
Beleche surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Beleche?
Name Census estimates that about 149 living Americans carry the surname Beleche. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,300,365 residents.
How common is Beleche?
Beleche ranks #134,631 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 130 people with the surname Beleche. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (149), 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 Beleche.
Has Beleche become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Beleche went from 158 recorded bearers to 130. That is a decrease of 28 (-17.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #111,426 to #134,631.
What does the Census say about the background of Beleche?
Among Census respondents with the surname Beleche, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 98.5%. The next largest groups are White (1.5%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Beleche in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.5% (128 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Beleche appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (98.5%), White (1.5%). 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 Beleche (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 Beleche mean?
A variant spelling of the French surname Bélèche, likely denoting someone from a place of that name. 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 Beleche (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 Beleche?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.