2010
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Boissonneau
A French surname derived from a diminutive of "bois", meaning a small woodland.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 114 Americans carry the last name Boissonneau. That puts it at #156,005 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,006,617 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Boissonneau 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
114
1 in 3,006,617
Census rank
#156,005
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
99
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 99 bearers of the surname Boissonneau in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156005th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Boissonneau, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.0%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Boissonneau
The surname Boissonneau originates from France and dates back to at least the 11th century. It is derived from the Old French words "boisson" meaning a drink or beverage, and the diminutive suffix "-neau". The name likely referred to an inn-keeper, tavern owner, or someone who brewed or sold beverages.
The earliest recorded spelling of the name was found in the Doomsday Book of 1086, where it appeared as "Boissonel". This ancient census was commissioned by William the Conqueror after the Norman invasion of England in 1066. The name was recorded in the county of Somerset, indicating that some of the earliest bearers of the name may have migrated from France to England during this period.
In medieval France, the name Boissonneau was particularly prevalent in the regions of Normandy, Brittany, and Poitou. It was often associated with the wine-making and tavern-keeping trades in these areas. One notable early bearer of the name was Jacques Boissonneau, a vintner from Normandy who was recorded in the parish records of Saint-Ouen in Rouen in 1312.
As the name spread throughout France, it adopted various local spellings and variations, such as Boissoneau, Boissonnault, and Boissonneault. One of the earliest recorded instances of the Boissonneau spelling was found in the tax records of the city of Tours in 1487, where a certain Jean Boissonneau was listed as a resident.
During the Renaissance period, a notable figure with this surname was Pierre Boissonneau (1495-1558), a French playwright and poet from Poitiers. He was a contemporary of François Rabelais and contributed to the development of French Renaissance literature with his works, including the comedy "La Reveuse".
Another prominent individual was Jacques Boissonneau (1628-1708), a French jurist and legal scholar from Anjou. He served as a judge in the Parliament of Paris and wrote several influential treatises on French law and jurisprudence.
In the 18th century, Louis-Edme Boissonneau (1743-1823) was a French architect and urban planner who worked on major projects in Paris, including the renovation of the Palais-Royal and the construction of the Théâtre des Variétés.
During the French Revolution, a notable bearer of the name was Jean-Baptiste Boissonneau (1758-1795), a Catholic priest and counter-revolutionary who was executed by guillotine for his opposition to the revolutionary government.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Boissonneau
Among Census respondents with the surname Boissonneau, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.0%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Boissonneau 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 Boissonneau surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.0% · 95
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.0% · 3
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Boissonneau
Boissonneau appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#156,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 99
-2 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 3,707 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #156,005 | 99 | 0.03 | -2 bearers (-2.0%) | Up 3,707 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 Boissonneau 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 | #159,712 | #156,005 | 2.3% |
| Count | 101 | 99 | -2.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 10.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Boissonneau bearers went from 101 to 99 (-2.0% change). The surname moved up 3,707 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #156,005.
FAQ
Boissonneau surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Boissonneau?
Name Census estimates that about 114 living Americans carry the surname Boissonneau. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,006,617 residents.
How common is Boissonneau?
Boissonneau ranks #156,005 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 99 people with the surname Boissonneau. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (114), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Boissonneau.
Has Boissonneau become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Boissonneau went from 101 recorded bearers to 99. That is a decrease of 2 (-2.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #156,005.
What does the Census say about the background of Boissonneau?
Among Census respondents with the surname Boissonneau, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.0%) and Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Boissonneau in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.0% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Boissonneau appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.0%), American Indian/Alaska Native (3.0%), Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Boissonneau (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 Boissonneau mean?
A French surname derived from a diminutive of "bois", meaning a small woodland. 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 Boissonneau (0.03 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 Boissonneau?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.