2000
#7,892
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,891
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.44
Rare Last name
Charette
A French occupational surname for a person who transported goods by cart or wagon.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,359 Americans carry the last name Charette. That puts it at #8,341 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.27 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 78,631 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Charette 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
4.4K
1 in 78,631
Census rank
#8,341
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,801 bearers of the surname Charette in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.27 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8341st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Charette, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (5.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Charette
The surname Charette has its origins in France, specifically in the Normandy region. It is believed to have emerged during the Middle Ages, sometime around the 11th or 12th century. The name is derived from the Old French word "charete," which meant a small cart or wagon.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Charette can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. It is likely that individuals bearing this surname migrated from Normandy to England during the Norman conquest.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named Pierre Charette was mentioned in the records of the Abbey of Saint-Wandrille in Normandy. Another early reference is found in the Reims census of 1262, which lists a certain Jean Charette as a resident of the city.
The name Charette has also been associated with various place names in France, such as Charette-Varenne, a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department, and Charette, a former municipality in the Isère department, both of which may have influenced the surname's development.
One of the most famous individuals bearing the surname Charette was François-Athanase Charette de la Contrie (1763-1796), a French royalist leader during the Revolutionary Wars. He played a significant role in the Vendée uprising against the French Republic.
Another notable figure was Joseph-François Charette (1651-1719), a French military officer and the founder of the École des Charettes, a military academy in Québec, Canada. He served under Louis XIV and played a crucial role in the defense of the French colony during the Beaver Wars.
In the 19th century, Pierre-Joseph-Olivier Charette (1828-1915) was a Canadian Roman Catholic priest and educator who served as the third President of Université Laval in Quebec City.
The name Charette has also been associated with Jacques-Roger Charette (1786-1874), a French architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings and neighborhoods in Paris.
Finally, Jean-Baptiste Charette (1868-1943) was a French painter and illustrator known for his realistic depictions of military scenes and landscapes. He was a member of the Société des Artistes Français and exhibited his works at the Salon des Artistes Français.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Charette
Among Census respondents with the surname Charette, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (5.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Charette 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 Charette surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.7% · 3,221
- American Indian and Alaska Native5.6% · 211
- Two or more races5.0% · 190
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 128
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 26
- Black or African American0.7% · 25
Timeline
Historical Census data for Charette
Charette 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
#8,032
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,121
+230 bearers (+5.9%)
Per 100,000 1.40
Rank movement Down 140 places
2020
#8,341
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,801
-320 bearers (-7.8%)
Per 100,000 1.27
Rank movement Down 309 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,892 | 3,891 | 1.44 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,032 | 4,121 | 1.40 | +230 bearers (+5.9%) | Down 140 places |
| 2020 | #8,341 | 3,801 | 1.27 | -320 bearers (-7.8%) | Down 309 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 Charette 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 | #8,032 | #8,341 | -3.8% |
| Count | 4,121 | 3,801 | -7.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.40 | 1.27 | -9.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Charette bearers went from 4,121 to 3,801 (-7.8% change). The surname moved down 309 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,032 to #8,341.
FAQ
Charette surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Charette?
Name Census estimates that about 4,359 living Americans carry the surname Charette. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 78,631 residents.
How common is Charette?
Charette ranks #8,341 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.27 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 3,801 people with the surname Charette. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,359), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.27 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.27 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 Charette.
Has Charette become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Charette went from 4,121 recorded bearers to 3,801. That is a decrease of 320 (-7.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,032 to #8,341.
What does the Census say about the background of Charette?
Among Census respondents with the surname Charette, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (5.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Charette in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.7% (3,221 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Charette appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.7%), American Indian/Alaska Native (5.6%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Charette (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 Charette mean?
A French occupational surname for a person who transported goods by cart or wagon. 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 Charette (1.27 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 share the surname Charette?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.