2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Darneille
Of French origin, meaning "from the valley" or "little dale".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 118 Americans carry the last name Darneille. That puts it at #154,182 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,904,698 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Darneille 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
118
1 in 2,904,698
Census rank
#154,182
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
103
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 103 bearers of the surname Darneille in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154182nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Darneille, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Black (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Darneille
The surname Darneille is thought to have originated in France during the medieval period. It is likely derived from the Old French word "darnaille," which referred to a type of woolen cloth. The name may have initially been given as a descriptive nickname to someone who worked with this particular fabric, such as a weaver or merchant.
Records from the 13th century show variations of the name, including "de Arneille" and "d'Arneille," in various regions of northern France. These early spellings suggest the name may have been associated with a specific place, perhaps a town or village called Arneille or something similar.
One of the earliest documented instances of the name is found in a manuscript from the late 14th century, which mentions a Jean Darneille, a cloth merchant from the city of Rouen in Normandy. This provides further evidence of the name's connection to the textile trade.
In the 15th century, the Darneille surname began to appear in other parts of Europe, likely as French families migrated or established trade networks. For example, a record from 1472 in Flanders (modern-day Belgium) refers to a Willem van Darneille, a merchant who dealt in woolen goods.
Notable individuals with the Darneille surname include:
1. Jacques Darneille (c. 1560-1635), a French Huguenot pastor and theologian who served in Geneva and was a prominent figure in the Protestant Reformation.
2. Pierre Darneille (1622-1676), a French playwright and tragedian, considered one of the founders of the French classical tragedy genre.
3. Marie-Anne Darneille (1684-1752), a French portrait painter and miniaturist who worked in the court of King Louis XV.
4. John Darneille (1767-1844), an English architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including St. Katharine's Docks.
5. Charles Darneille (1824-1891), a French military officer and explorer who led expeditions in North Africa and the Middle East, and served as the governor of French Somaliland (modern-day Djibouti).
While the Darneille name has its roots in the textile industry of medieval France, it has since spread across Europe and beyond, with individuals bearing this surname making contributions in various fields throughout history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Darneille
Among Census respondents with the surname Darneille, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Black (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Darneille 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 Darneille surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.3% · 91
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 4
- Black or African American2.9% · 3
- Two or more races2.9% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Darneille
Darneille 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,437 places
2020
#154,182
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
-11 bearers (-9.6%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 8,962 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 8,437 places |
| 2020 | #154,182 | 103 | 0.03 | -11 bearers (-9.6%) | Down 8,962 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 Darneille 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 | #145,220 | #154,182 | -6.2% |
| Count | 114 | 103 | -9.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Darneille bearers went from 114 to 103 (-9.6% change). The surname moved down 8,962 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #154,182.
FAQ
Darneille surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Darneille?
Name Census estimates that about 118 living Americans carry the surname Darneille. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,904,698 residents.
How common is Darneille?
Darneille ranks #154,182 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 103 people with the surname Darneille. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (118), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Darneille.
Has Darneille become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Darneille went from 114 recorded bearers to 103. That is a decrease of 11 (-9.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #154,182.
What does the Census say about the background of Darneille?
Among Census respondents with the surname Darneille, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Black (2.9%). 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 Darneille in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.3% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Darneille appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.3%), Hispanic (3.9%), Black (2.9%). 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 Darneille (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 Darneille mean?
Of French origin, meaning "from the valley" or "little dale". 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 Darneille (0.03 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 Darneille?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.