2000
#18,883
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,338
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.50
Rare Last name
Brandy
A surname derived from the French brandy, meaning a type of distilled alcoholic spirit.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,279 Americans carry the last name Brandy. That puts it at #23,499 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 267,986 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brandy 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Brandy with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.3K
1 in 267,986
Census rank
#23,499
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,115 bearers of the surname Brandy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 23499th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brandy, the largest self-reported group is Black at 56.9%. The next largest groups are White (29.1%) and Hispanic (7.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brandy
The surname Brandy is believed to have originated in England and can be traced back to the late 16th century. It is derived from the Old French word "brande," which means "burning wood" or "firebrand." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived near a burning or charred area, or perhaps someone who worked with fire or charcoal.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Brandy can be found in the parish records of St. Peter's Church in Sandwich, Kent, where a certain William Brandy was mentioned in 1593. The name also appears in the Hearth Tax Rolls of 1665, which listed households that were required to pay a tax based on the number of hearths or fireplaces they had.
In the 17th century, the Brandy surname was concentrated in the counties of Kent, Essex, and Suffolk in southeastern England. It is possible that the name may have originated from a place name, as there are several locations in these counties with names similar to "Brandy," such as Brandes, Brandeston, and Brandish.
One notable individual with the surname Brandy was Sir John Brandy (c. 1590-1659), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Sandwich during the reign of King Charles I. Another prominent Brandy was Thomas Brandy (1633-1677), an English clergyman who served as the Archdeacon of Suffolk from 1667 until his death.
In the 18th century, the Brandy surname spread to other parts of England, as well as to Scotland and Ireland. One significant figure from this period was John Brandy (1743-1809), a Scottish architect who designed several notable buildings in Edinburgh, including the Old College and the Canongate Tolbooth.
Another individual of note was Mary Brandy (1765-1845), an Irish writer and poet who published several collections of poems and plays during her lifetime. She is considered one of the earliest female writers to gain recognition in Ireland.
As the centuries progressed, the Brandy surname continued to spread throughout the British Isles and eventually to other parts of the world, carried by emigrants and settlers. While the name may have evolved from different origins or meanings in different regions, its roots can be traced back to the Old French word "brande" and its association with fire or burning.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brandy
Among Census respondents with the surname Brandy, the largest self-reported group is Black at 56.9%. The next largest groups are White (29.1%) and Hispanic (7.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Brandy 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 Brandy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American56.9% · 634
- White29.1% · 325
- Hispanic or Latino7.2% · 80
- Two or more races4.7% · 52
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 15
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brandy
Brandy 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
#20,627
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,284
-54 bearers (-4.0%)
Per 100,000 0.44
Rank movement Down 1,744 places
2020
#23,499
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,115
-169 bearers (-13.2%)
Per 100,000 0.37
Rank movement Down 2,872 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,883 | 1,338 | 0.50 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #20,627 | 1,284 | 0.44 | -54 bearers (-4.0%) | Down 1,744 places |
| 2020 | #23,499 | 1,115 | 0.37 | -169 bearers (-13.2%) | Down 2,872 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 Brandy 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 | #20,627 | #23,499 | -13.9% |
| Count | 1,284 | 1,115 | -13.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.44 | 0.37 | -15.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brandy bearers went from 1,284 to 1,115 (-13.2% change). The surname moved down 2,872 positions in the national ranking, going from #20,627 to #23,499.
FAQ
Brandy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brandy?
Name Census estimates that about 1,279 living Americans carry the surname Brandy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 267,986 residents.
How common is Brandy?
Brandy ranks #23,499 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.37 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 1,115 people with the surname Brandy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,279), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.37 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 Brandy.
Has Brandy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brandy went from 1,284 recorded bearers to 1,115. That is a decrease of 169 (-13.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #20,627 to #23,499.
What does the Census say about the background of Brandy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brandy, the largest self-reported group is Black at 56.9%. The next largest groups are White (29.1%) and Hispanic (7.2%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Brandy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 56.9% (634 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brandy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (56.9%), White (29.1%), Hispanic (7.2%). 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 Brandy (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 Brandy mean?
A surname derived from the French brandy, meaning a type of distilled alcoholic spirit. 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 Brandy (0.37 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 Brandy?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.