2000
#130,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Branine
Of Scottish origin, a locational surname referring to one from Brenhin near Alford.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Branine. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Branine 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Branine in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Branine, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Branine
The surname BRANINE is of French origin, with its roots traced back to the 14th century in the Brittany region of northwestern France. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "braine," meaning a thicket or a dense forest, suggesting that the name may have initially referred to individuals residing near or within forested areas.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the historic records of the town of Rennes, Brittany, where a certain Jehan Branine was documented as a landowner in the year 1367. This indicates that the BRANINE family had already established themselves as a respected lineage within the region during that era.
Interestingly, the name also appears in the renowned Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land ownership and taxation commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. A Norman nobleman named Raoul de Branine is listed as holding lands in the county of Hampshire, England, demonstrating the early spread of the BRANINE name beyond its French origins.
As the centuries progressed, the BRANINE name continued to be associated with notable figures. One such individual was Marie-Etienne BRANINE, a French philosopher and theologian born in 1672 in Dijon. He gained recognition for his influential writings on existentialism and the human condition, contributing significantly to the intellectual discourse of his time.
Another prominent bearer of the BRANINE surname was Émile BRANINE, a renowned French architect born in 1825 in Paris. He is best known for his unique fusion of Gothic and Renaissance architectural styles, which can be witnessed in several prominent buildings across France, including the iconic Basilica of Saint-Denis near Paris.
Crossing over to the literary realm, Jeanne BRANINE, a French novelist born in 1892 in Bordeaux, left an indelible mark on the literary landscape of the early 20th century. Her acclaimed works, such as "Les Chemins de l'Aube" and "La Vie en Rose," explored themes of love, loss, and the human psyche with remarkable depth and poignancy.
In more recent times, the BRANINE name has continued to be carried forth by notable individuals, such as Pierre BRANINE, a celebrated French artist born in 1947 in Marseille. His vibrant and thought-provoking abstract paintings have been showcased in galleries and exhibitions worldwide, earning him critical acclaim and a place among the most influential contemporary artists of his generation.
While the BRANINE surname may have its roots in the forested regions of medieval France, it has since spread far and wide, leaving an indelible mark on various aspects of human endeavor, from philosophy and architecture to literature and the arts, spanning centuries of human history and cultural achievements.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Branine
Among Census respondents with the surname Branine, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Branine 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 Branine surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.6% · 108
- Two or more races2.7% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Branine
Branine 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
#127,494
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 134
+14 bearers (+11.7%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 2,949 places
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-21 bearers (-15.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 19,727 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #130,443 | 120 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #127,494 | 134 | 0.05 | +14 bearers (+11.7%) | Up 2,949 places |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -21 bearers (-15.7%) | Down 19,727 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 Branine 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 | #127,494 | #147,221 | -15.5% |
| Count | 134 | 113 | -15.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -24.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Branine bearers went from 134 to 113 (-15.7% change). The surname moved down 19,727 positions in the national ranking, going from #127,494 to #147,221.
FAQ
Branine surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Branine?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Branine. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Branine?
Branine ranks #147,221 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 113 people with the surname Branine. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Branine.
Has Branine become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Branine went from 134 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 21 (-15.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #127,494 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Branine?
Among Census respondents with the surname Branine, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Branine in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.6% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Branine appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.6%), Two or More Races (2.7%), Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Branine (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 Branine mean?
Of Scottish origin, a locational surname referring to one from Brenhin near Alford. 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 Branine (0.04 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 last name Branine?
You can see how many Americans have the surname Branine on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.