2000
#10,317
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,861
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.06
Rare Last name
Brouillette
A French occupational surname referring to a wood cutter or one who clears land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,330 Americans carry the last name Brouillette. That puts it at #10,534 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 102,929 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brouillette 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
3.3K
1 in 102,929
Census rank
#10,534
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,904 bearers of the surname Brouillette in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10534th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brouillette, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brouillette
The surname Brouillette has its origins in France, dating back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "brouillart," which means "fog" or "mist." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in a foggy or misty area.
The earliest recorded instances of the Brouillette name can be traced back to the northern regions of France, particularly in the provinces of Normandy and Picardy. Historical records indicate that the name was present in these areas as early as the 13th century.
One of the earliest known mentions of the Brouillette name appears in the census records of the village of Rouen in Normandy, dated around 1250. In these records, a family bearing the surname Brouillette is listed as residents of the village.
It is worth noting that the name may have also been associated with certain place names or locations that included words related to fog or mist. For example, there is a village called Brouillet in the department of Eure-et-Loir, which could have been the origin of some Brouillette families.
Among the notable historical figures bearing the Brouillette surname, one can mention:
1. Jean Brouillette (1630-1701), a French explorer and fur trader who was active in the Great Lakes region of North America during the 17th century.
2. Marie-Anne Brouillette (1701-1768), a French Canadian woman who was one of the earliest settlers in the region of what is now Montreal.
3. Pierre Brouillette (1785-1856), a French-Canadian businessman and landowner who played a significant role in the development of the town of Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec.
4. Jacques Brouillette (1823-1901), a French-Canadian lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Quebec Legislative Assembly in the late 19th century.
5. Émilie Brouillette (1867-1942), a French-Canadian painter and artist known for her landscapes and portraits depicting rural life in Quebec.
While the Brouillette name has its roots in France, it later spread to other parts of the world, particularly to the French-speaking regions of Canada and the United States, due to immigration and settlement patterns.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brouillette
Among Census respondents with the surname Brouillette, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Brouillette 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 Brouillette surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 2,665
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 98
- Two or more races3.0% · 87
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 29
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 17
- Black or African American0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brouillette
Brouillette 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
#10,743
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,971
+110 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 1.01
Rank movement Down 426 places
2020
#10,534
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,904
-67 bearers (-2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Up 209 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,317 | 2,861 | 1.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,743 | 2,971 | 1.01 | +110 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 426 places |
| 2020 | #10,534 | 2,904 | 0.97 | -67 bearers (-2.3%) | Up 209 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 Brouillette 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 | #10,743 | #10,534 | 1.9% |
| Count | 2,971 | 2,904 | -2.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.01 | 0.97 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brouillette bearers went from 2,971 to 2,904 (-2.3% change). The surname moved up 209 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,743 to #10,534.
FAQ
Brouillette surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brouillette?
Name Census estimates that about 3,330 living Americans carry the surname Brouillette. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 102,929 residents.
How common is Brouillette?
Brouillette ranks #10,534 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.97 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 2,904 people with the surname Brouillette. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,330), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.97 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 Brouillette.
Has Brouillette become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brouillette went from 2,971 recorded bearers to 2,904. That is a decrease of 67 (-2.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,743 to #10,534.
What does the Census say about the background of Brouillette?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brouillette, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Brouillette in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (2,665 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brouillette appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Brouillette (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 Brouillette mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a wood cutter or one who clears land. 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 Brouillette (0.97 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 common is the surname Brouillette?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Brouillette, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.