2000
#9,226
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,251
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.21
Rare Last name
Chouinard
A French occupational surname referring to a sweeper, derived from the Old French word "choenard" meaning "sweeper."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,778 Americans carry the last name Chouinard. That puts it at #9,447 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.10 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 90,724 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Chouinard 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
3.8K
1 in 90,724
Census rank
#9,447
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,295 bearers of the surname Chouinard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.10 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9447th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Chouinard, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Chouinard
The surname Chouinard originated in France and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "chouiner," which means "to whine" or "to complain." The name was initially used as a descriptive nickname for someone with a tendency to complain or grumble.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Chouinard can be found in the Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Redon, a medieval French manuscript dating back to the 12th century. This document mentions a person named Robertus Chouinart, suggesting that the name was already in use during that period.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various records from the Normandy region of France. For instance, the Livre des Bourgeois de Rouen, a register of the citizens of Rouen, lists a certain Guillaume Chouinart in 1345. This suggests that the name was prevalent in the northern regions of France during the Middle Ages.
The name Chouinard has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One such person was Jean-Baptiste Chouinard (1712-1797), a French-Canadian farmer and militia officer who played a role in the defense of Quebec during the American Revolutionary War.
Another noteworthy figure was François-Xavier Chouinard (1847-1916), a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1891 to 1904. He was also the mayor of the city of Quebec from 1892 to 1894.
In the field of literature, André Chouinard (1902-1984) was a prominent French-Canadian poet and essayist. He was known for his works that explored the themes of nature, spirituality, and the human condition.
The name Chouinard has also been associated with various place names in France. For example, there is a small village called Chouinard in the department of Eure-et-Loir. Additionally, the name appears in older spellings of place names, such as "Chouynar" or "Chouynart," reflecting the evolution of the name over time.
Throughout its history, the surname Chouinard has undergone various spelling variations, including Chouinart, Chouynart, Chouynard, and Chouynart. These variations often reflected regional dialects and scribal practices of the time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chouinard
Among Census respondents with the surname Chouinard, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Chouinard 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 Chouinard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 3,021
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 127
- Two or more races3.0% · 99
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 33
- Black or African American0.2% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Chouinard
Chouinard 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
#9,652
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,362
+111 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 1.14
Rank movement Down 426 places
2020
#9,447
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,295
-67 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 1.10
Rank movement Up 205 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,226 | 3,251 | 1.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,652 | 3,362 | 1.14 | +111 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 426 places |
| 2020 | #9,447 | 3,295 | 1.10 | -67 bearers (-2.0%) | Up 205 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 Chouinard 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 | #9,652 | #9,447 | 2.1% |
| Count | 3,362 | 3,295 | -2.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.14 | 1.10 | -3.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Chouinard bearers went from 3,362 to 3,295 (-2.0% change). The surname moved up 205 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,652 to #9,447.
FAQ
Chouinard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Chouinard?
Name Census estimates that about 3,778 living Americans carry the surname Chouinard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 90,724 residents.
How common is Chouinard?
Chouinard ranks #9,447 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.10 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 3,295 people with the surname Chouinard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,778), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.10 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 Chouinard.
Has Chouinard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Chouinard went from 3,362 recorded bearers to 3,295. That is a decrease of 67 (-2.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,652 to #9,447.
What does the Census say about the background of Chouinard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Chouinard, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) 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 Chouinard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (3,021 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Chouinard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Hispanic (3.9%), 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 Chouinard (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 Chouinard mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a sweeper, derived from the Old French word "choenard" meaning "sweeper." 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 Chouinard (1.10 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 are called Chouinard?
Want to know how common the surname Chouinard is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.