2000
#2,026
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,409
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.08
Uncommon Last name
Burnette
A diminutive of Burnett, derived from a nickname for someone with dark brown hair or a dark complexion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 18,189 Americans carry the last name Burnette. That puts it at #2,234 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 18,844 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Burnette 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
18K
1 in 18,844
Census rank
#2,234
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
16K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,862 bearers of the surname Burnette in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2234th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Burnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.4%. The next largest groups are Black (18.6%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Burnette
The surname Burnette is believed to have originated in France and is a variation of the name Burnett. The name Burnett is thought to derive from the Old French word "brunet," which means "brown" or "dark brown." This suggests that the surname may have initially been a nickname referring to someone with brown hair or a dark complexion.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Burnett date back to the 12th century in Normandy, France. However, it wasn't until the 13th century that the name began to appear in English records, likely brought to Britain by Norman settlers after the Norman Conquest of 1066.
One of the earliest known references to the surname Burnette can be found in the Rotuli Hundredorum, a census-like record compiled in England in the late 13th century. This document mentions a William Burnet living in Oxfordshire.
In the 14th century, the name Burnette appeared in various spellings, including Burnet, Burnett, and Burnette, reflecting the fluid nature of surname spellings during that time period. For instance, in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1327, a John Burnett is listed as a resident of the county.
One notable figure with the surname Burnette was Sir Robert Burnett (c. 1585-1670), a Scottish landowner and politician who served as Lord of Session in Scotland's highest civil court.
Another historical figure was John Burnett (1619-1684), an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works, including a treatise on the doctrine of the Trinity.
In the 18th century, James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (1714-1799), was a Scottish philosopher, linguist, and judge. He is remembered for his theory that humans descended from primates, which was considered highly controversial at the time.
The surname Burnette also has ties to the United States, with several notable individuals bearing this name. For example, Dana Burnett (1888-1917) was an American aviator and one of the first female pilots in the United States.
Another prominent figure was Whit Burnett (1899-1972), an American writer and editor who founded the influential literary magazine Story, which published works by notable authors such as J.D. Salinger and Carson McCullers.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Burnette
Among Census respondents with the surname Burnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.4%. The next largest groups are Black (18.6%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Burnette 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 Burnette surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.4% · 11,173
- Black or African American18.6% · 2,958
- Two or more races4.4% · 692
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.5% · 556
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 393
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 90
Timeline
Historical Census data for Burnette
Burnette 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
#2,172
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,717
+308 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 5.67
Rank movement Down 146 places
2020
#2,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,862
-855 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 5.31
Rank movement Down 62 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,026 | 16,409 | 6.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,172 | 16,717 | 5.67 | +308 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 146 places |
| 2020 | #2,234 | 15,862 | 5.31 | -855 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 62 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 Burnette 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 | #2,172 | #2,234 | -2.9% |
| Count | 16,717 | 15,862 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 5.67 | 5.31 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Burnette bearers went from 16,717 to 15,862 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 62 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,172 to #2,234.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Burnette
FAQ
Burnette surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Burnette?
Name Census estimates that about 18,189 living Americans carry the surname Burnette. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 18,844 residents.
How common is Burnette?
Burnette ranks #2,234 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.31 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,862 people with the surname Burnette. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (18,189), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.31 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Burnette.
Has Burnette become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Burnette went from 16,717 recorded bearers to 15,862. That is a decrease of 855 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,172 to #2,234.
What does the Census say about the background of Burnette?
Among Census respondents with the surname Burnette, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.4%. The next largest groups are Black (18.6%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Burnette in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.4% (11,173 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Burnette appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.4%), Black (18.6%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Burnette (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 Burnette mean?
A diminutive of Burnett, derived from a nickname for someone with dark brown hair or a dark complexion. 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 Burnette (5.31 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 Burnette?
If you just want to know how common the surname Burnette is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.