Find out how popular the last name Bernier is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Bernier.

Bernier, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Bernier surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bernier in America

Bernier is the 3693rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bernier surname appeared 9,614 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Bernier.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bernier to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Bernier

The surname BERNIER has its roots in France, originating from the Old French word "bernier," which means "shepherd." This name gained prominence during the medieval period, particularly in the regions of Normandy and Brittany.

The earliest recorded instances of the BERNIER surname can be traced back to the 11th century, with references found in various historical documents and records from that era. One notable mention is in the Domesday Book of 1086, where the name appears as "Bernier" and "Bernario."

In the 12th century, a notable figure bearing the BERNIER surname was Étienne BERNIER (c. 1150-1220), a French monk and theologian who served as the abbot of Cîteaux and played a significant role in the development of the Cistercian order.

During the Renaissance period, the BERNIER family produced several notable individuals, including François BERNIER (1620-1688), a French traveler and philosopher who is best known for his travels to India and his writings on the Mughal Empire.

In the 18th century, Jacques BERNIER (1720-1788) was a French architect and engineer who gained recognition for his work on the Basilica of St. Denis near Paris.

Moving into the 19th century, Louis BERNIER (1823-1892) was a French historian and author who wrote extensively on the history of Normandy and the Norman conquest of England.

Another prominent figure with the BERNIER surname was Charles BERNIER (1876-1957), a French painter and illustrator known for his impressionistic landscapes and scenes of rural life in Normandy.

Throughout history, the BERNIER surname has also been associated with various place names, such as Bernier, a commune in the Somme department of northern France, and Bernieressur-Mer, a commune in the Calvados department of Normandy.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bernier

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Bernier.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Bernier was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Bernier has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Bernier was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Bernier, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!