2010
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Clerjuste
A surname derived from the French words "clerc" and "juste," meaning a just or honorable clerk or scribe.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Clerjuste. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Clerjuste 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Clerjuste in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Clerjuste, the largest self-reported group is Black at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Clerjuste
The surname CLERJUSTE originated in France during the late Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old French words "clerg" meaning clergy and "juste" meaning just or righteous. This suggests the name may have initially been given to someone associated with the church or clergy who was known for their virtuous and upright character.
CLERJUSTE is a variant spelling of the more common French surname Clergue or Clergues. The earliest known records of this name date back to the 13th century in the region of Provence in southern France. It is likely the name arose there first before spreading to other areas.
One of the earliest documented instances of the CLERJUSTE spelling appears in a Latin manuscript from 1297 referring to a "Petrus Clerjuste" from the town of Aix-en-Provence. This indicates the surname was already an established hereditary name by that point.
In the 14th century, records show a Jacques CLERJUSTE who was a lawyer and notary in the city of Marseille around 1350. His family crest and coat of arms can still be seen carved into the walls of the old city center.
During the 1500s, the CLERJUSTE name spread further as Pierre CLERJUSTE (1499-1572) became a renowned Catholic priest and theologian who wrote extensively on church doctrine and reform. He was a contemporary of John Calvin during the Protestant Reformation period.
Later, in the 1700s, there was a Jean-Baptiste CLERJUSTE (1710-1792) who was a wealthy merchant and shipowner based in the coastal town of La Ciotat near Marseille. Historical shipping records list many of the trade voyages his vessels undertook.
Another notable bearer was the French Impressionist painter Paul CLERJUSTE (1855-1924) who was part of the art colony in Arles that included masters like Van Gogh and Gauguin. Several of his landscape paintings featured scenes of Provence.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Clerjuste
Among Census respondents with the surname Clerjuste, the largest self-reported group is Black at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Clerjuste 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 Clerjuste surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American95.3% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Clerjuste
Clerjuste appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
+5 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 7,373 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+5.0%) | Up 7,373 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 Clerjuste 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 | #159,712 | #152,339 | 4.6% |
| Count | 101 | 106 | 5.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 18.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Clerjuste bearers went from 101 to 106 (+5.0% change). The surname moved up 7,373 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #152,339.
FAQ
Clerjuste surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Clerjuste?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Clerjuste. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Clerjuste?
Clerjuste ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Clerjuste. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Clerjuste.
Has Clerjuste become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Clerjuste went from 101 recorded bearers to 106. That is an increase of 5 (+5.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Clerjuste?
Among Census respondents with the surname Clerjuste, the largest self-reported group is Black at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Clerjuste in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.3% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Clerjuste appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (95.3%), Hispanic (4.7%). 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 Clerjuste (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 Clerjuste mean?
A surname derived from the French words "clerc" and "juste," meaning a just or honorable clerk or scribe. 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 Clerjuste (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 common is the surname Clerjuste?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Clerjuste at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.