2000
#9,630
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,097
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.15
Rare Last name
Bilyeu
Derived from the French surname "Billieu," referring to someone from a place called Billieu in northern France.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,376 Americans carry the last name Bilyeu. That puts it at #10,419 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 101,527 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bilyeu 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
3.4K
1 in 101,527
Census rank
#10,419
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,944 bearers of the surname Bilyeu in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10419th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bilyeu, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Hispanic (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bilyeu
The surname Bilyeu originated in France in the early 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "billeu," which referred to a type of leather worker or craftsman. The earliest recorded spelling of the name was "Billiou" in the region of Normandy.
During the Middle Ages, the Bilyeu family was known to reside in the northern French provinces of Normandy and Brittany. Their name can be found in various medieval records and documents from these regions, including land grants and tax rolls.
One of the earliest known references to the Bilyeu name comes from a 13th-century manuscript, the "Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Fécamp," which mentions a "Hugues Billiou" as a landowner in the village of Fécamp, Normandy.
By the 14th century, the Bilyeu name had spread across northern France and into neighboring regions. In 1347, a "Jehan Bilyeu" was listed as a resident of the city of Amiens in the Somme region.
As the centuries passed, variations in the spelling of the name emerged, such as "Billiou," "Biliou," and "Billyeu." These variations were often influenced by local dialects and scribal errors in record-keeping.
One notable figure with the Bilyeu surname was Jacques Bilyeu (1580-1648), a French magistrate and jurist from Rouen, Normandy. He served as a judge in the Parlement of Normandy and was known for his expertise in legal matters.
Another prominent individual was Antoine Bilyeu (1623-1687), a French military officer who fought in the Thirty Years' War and later served as a commander in the King's Guard under Louis XIV.
In the 18th century, a branch of the Bilyeu family settled in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (modern-day Haiti). One member, Pierre Bilyeu (1742-1803), became a successful plantation owner and played a role in the colony's administration.
The Bilyeu name also found its way to the New World, with several immigrants bearing the surname arriving in North America in the 17th and 18th centuries. One such individual was Jean-Baptiste Bilyeu (1702-1778), who settled in Quebec, Canada, and worked as a fur trader.
Another notable figure was Marie-Thérèse Bilyeu (1755-1823), a French-born woman who immigrated to Louisiana and became a prominent landowner and philanthropist in the city of New Orleans.
While the Bilyeu surname has its origins in France, it has since spread across the globe and can be found in many countries today, including the United States, Canada, and various parts of Europe and Latin America.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bilyeu
Among Census respondents with the surname Bilyeu, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Hispanic (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Bilyeu 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 Bilyeu surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.9% · 2,618
- Two or more races4.8% · 140
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 115
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 33
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 23
- Black or African American0.5% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bilyeu
Bilyeu 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
#10,414
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,091
-6 bearers (-0.2%)
Per 100,000 1.05
Rank movement Down 784 places
2020
#10,419
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,944
-147 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.98
Rank movement Down 5 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,630 | 3,097 | 1.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,414 | 3,091 | 1.05 | -6 bearers (-0.2%) | Down 784 places |
| 2020 | #10,419 | 2,944 | 0.98 | -147 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 5 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 Bilyeu 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 | #10,414 | #10,419 | -0.0% |
| Count | 3,091 | 2,944 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.05 | 0.98 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bilyeu bearers went from 3,091 to 2,944 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 5 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,414 to #10,419.
FAQ
Bilyeu surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bilyeu?
Name Census estimates that about 3,376 living Americans carry the surname Bilyeu. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 101,527 residents.
How common is Bilyeu?
Bilyeu ranks #10,419 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.98 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 2,944 people with the surname Bilyeu. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,376), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.98 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 Bilyeu.
Has Bilyeu become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bilyeu went from 3,091 recorded bearers to 2,944. That is a decrease of 147 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,414 to #10,419.
What does the Census say about the background of Bilyeu?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bilyeu, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Hispanic (3.9%). 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 Bilyeu in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.9% (2,618 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bilyeu appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.9%), Two or More Races (4.8%), Hispanic (3.9%). 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 Bilyeu (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 Bilyeu mean?
Derived from the French surname "Billieu," referring to someone from a place called Billieu in northern 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 Bilyeu (0.98 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 Bilyeu?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.