2000
#142,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Chenaille
A French surname referring to a hemp worker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Chenaille. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Chenaille 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Chenaille in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Chenaille, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Chenaille
The surname Chenaille originates from France, first appearing in historical records during the 11th century. The name is derived from the Old French word "chenaille," meaning "forest of oak trees." This suggests that the earliest bearers of the name were likely associated with forestry or lived in a wooded area populated with oak trees.
The Chenaille name can be traced back to the Normandy region of northern France, where it first emerged as a locational surname. Locational surnames were commonly adopted by people who had moved from their original homes to other areas, taking the name of their place of origin as their surname.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Chenaille surname is found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This document references a landowner named Raoul de Chenaille, indicating the presence of the name in Normandy during the 11th century.
In the 13th century, the Chenaille name appeared in the Chartres region of northern France, where a family bearing this surname was documented as owning land and properties. The earliest known member of this family was Jehan Chenaille, born in 1215.
As the centuries passed, the Chenaille name spread beyond its Norman origins to other regions of France. Notable individuals with this surname include:
1. Guillaume Chenaille (1540-1618), a French magistrate and legal scholar from Paris.
2. Marie-Anne Chenaille (1655-1732), a renowned French painter and portraitist from Marseille.
3. Jacques Chenaille (1725-1798), a French military officer who served during the French Revolutionary Wars.
4. Pierre Chenaille (1820-1892), a French author and historian from Lyon, known for his works on the history of the Rhône region.
5. Émilie Chenaille (1875-1949), a French educator and advocate for women's rights, born in Bordeaux.
While some variations in spelling occurred over time, such as Chesnaille and Chennaille, the core form of the surname has remained largely unchanged since its inception in medieval France.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chenaille
Among Census respondents with the surname Chenaille, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Chenaille 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 Chenaille surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 111
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Chenaille
Chenaille 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
+27 bearers (+25.2%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 15,325 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-16 bearers (-11.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,017 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #142,819 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #127,494 | 134 | 0.05 | +27 bearers (+25.2%) | Up 15,325 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | -16 bearers (-11.9%) | Down 16,017 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 Chenaille 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 | #143,511 | -12.6% |
| Count | 134 | 118 | -11.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -21.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Chenaille bearers went from 134 to 118 (-11.9% change). The surname moved down 16,017 positions in the national ranking, going from #127,494 to #143,511.
FAQ
Chenaille surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Chenaille?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Chenaille. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Chenaille?
Chenaille ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Chenaille. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Chenaille.
Has Chenaille become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Chenaille went from 134 recorded bearers to 118. That is a decrease of 16 (-11.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #127,494 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Chenaille?
Among Census respondents with the surname Chenaille, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Chenaille in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Chenaille appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Hispanic (3.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Chenaille (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 Chenaille mean?
A French surname referring to a hemp worker. 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 Chenaille (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 Chenaille?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Chenaille on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.