2000
#8,672
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,491
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.29
Rare Last name
Berard
A French topographic surname for someone who lived near a sheepfold or a Germanic surname meaning "hardy" or "brave."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,953 Americans carry the last name Berard. That puts it at #9,108 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 86,707 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Berard 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
4.0K
1 in 86,707
Census rank
#9,108
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,447 bearers of the surname Berard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9108th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Berard, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Berard
The surname Berard is of French origin, deriving from the Germanic personal name Berhart or Berard. This name is believed to have emerged in the 8th or 9th century in the Frankish territories that later became France. The name is composed of the elements "ber," meaning bear, and "hard," meaning hardy or brave.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Berard can be found in the 11th century cartulary of the Abbey of Montiéramey, which mentions a nobleman named Berard de Montmort. The Domesday Book, a survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, also includes references to individuals with the surname Berard or its variations.
During the Middle Ages, the name Berard was particularly prevalent in the regions of Normandy and Brittany in northern France. It is believed that some individuals with this surname may have been among the Norman settlers who accompanied William the Conqueror to England in 1066.
One notable figure bearing the surname Berard was Berard de Solers, a 12th-century French troubadour and poet from Provence. He is known for his contributions to the courtly love tradition and his poems dedicated to Lady Ermengarde of Narbonne.
Another historical figure was Berard de Grimoard, a French prelate who served as the Bishop of Frascati from 1356 to 1358. He was born in the town of Grisac, in the Languedoc region of southern France, in the late 13th century.
In England, the name Berard can be traced back to the 13th century, with records showing individuals such as Robert Berard, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1230.
A notable English figure with the surname Berard was John Berard, a 15th-century merchant and alderman of the City of London. He served as Lord Mayor of London in 1467 and was involved in the silk trade with Italy.
In the 16th century, Guillaume Berard was a French Protestant reformer and theologian from Montpellier. He was a prominent figure in the French Reformation and was involved in the translation of the Bible into French.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Berard
Among Census respondents with the surname Berard, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Berard 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 Berard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.5% · 2,946
- Black or African American6.5% · 225
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 124
- Two or more races3.2% · 111
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 33
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Berard
Berard 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
#9,118
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,582
+91 bearers (+2.6%)
Per 100,000 1.21
Rank movement Down 446 places
2020
#9,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,447
-135 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 1.15
Rank movement Up 10 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,672 | 3,491 | 1.29 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,118 | 3,582 | 1.21 | +91 bearers (+2.6%) | Down 446 places |
| 2020 | #9,108 | 3,447 | 1.15 | -135 bearers (-3.8%) | Up 10 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 Berard 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 | #9,118 | #9,108 | 0.1% |
| Count | 3,582 | 3,447 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.21 | 1.15 | -4.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Berard bearers went from 3,582 to 3,447 (-3.8% change). The surname moved up 10 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,118 to #9,108.
FAQ
Berard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Berard?
Name Census estimates that about 3,953 living Americans carry the surname Berard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 86,707 residents.
How common is Berard?
Berard ranks #9,108 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.15 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 3,447 people with the surname Berard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,953), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.15 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 Berard.
Has Berard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Berard went from 3,582 recorded bearers to 3,447. That is a decrease of 135 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,118 to #9,108.
What does the Census say about the background of Berard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Berard, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Berard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.5% (2,946 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Berard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.5%), Black (6.5%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Berard (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 Berard mean?
A French topographic surname for someone who lived near a sheepfold or a Germanic surname meaning "hardy" or "brave." 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 Berard (1.15 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 people have the surname Berard?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.