Bonnett last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Bonnett

A French occupational surname for a maker or seller of bonnets or hats.

Bonnett, 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 Bonnett surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bonnett in America

Bonnett is the 8239th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bonnett surname appeared 4,023 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Bonnett.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bonnett 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 8239 7962 3.42%
Count 4,023 3,855 4.27%
Proportion per 100k 1.36 1.43 -5.02%

The history of the last name Bonnett

The surname Bonnett is of French origin, derived from the Old French word "bonet," which means "small hat" or "cap." This name likely emerged in France during the medieval period, possibly as an occupational name for someone who made or sold hats or caps.

The earliest recorded use of the surname Bonnett can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which lists several individuals with variations of the name, such as Bonet and Bonnet, in various parts of England. It is believed that these individuals were of Norman descent and came to England after the Norman Conquest in 1066.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Bonnett was Robert Bonnet, who lived in Lincolnshire, England, in the 13th century. In the same century, a man named William Bonnet was listed as a landowner in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire.

The name Bonnett can also be found in various historical records from other parts of Europe, such as France and Germany. In France, the surname was sometimes spelled as Bonnet or Bonnette, while in Germany, it was commonly written as Bonnet or Bonnett.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Bonnett. One example is Jacques Bonnett (1574-1655), a French engraver and printmaker known for his portraits and religious subjects. Another is Jeremiah Bonnett (1766-1846), an American politician and lawyer who served as a U.S. Senator from New Hampshire.

Other notable individuals with the surname Bonnett include:

  1. Percival Bonnett (1856-1927), a British actor and playwright.
  2. Alvin C. Bonnett (1899-1973), an American businessman and philanthropist.
  3. Laurence Bonnett (1901-1989), a British artist and illustrator.
  4. Henry Bonnett (1926-2017), an American baseball player.
  5. Patricia Bonnett (born 1942), a British actress and writer.

The surname Bonnett has also been associated with various place names, such as Bonnett's Mill in Virginia, USA, and Bonnett's Town in Maryland, USA, both of which were likely named after early settlers or landowners with the surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bonnett

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

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 Bonnett was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 81.58% 3,282
Non-Hispanic Black Only 10.71% 431
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 1.04% 42
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.50% 20
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.99% 80
Hispanic Origin 4.18% 168

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 Bonnett has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 81.58% 85.16% -4.29%
Black 10.71% 10.09% 5.96%
Asian and Pacific Islander 1.04% 0.49% 71.90%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.50% 0.31% 46.91%
Two or More Races 1.99% 1.17% 51.90%
Hispanic 4.18% 2.78% 40.23%

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 Bonnett was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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"Bonnett last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/bonnett-surname-popularity/.

"Bonnett last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/bonnett-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Bonnett last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/bonnett-surname-popularity/.

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