2000
#7,899
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,887
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.44
Rare Last name
Delisle
A French topographic surname referring to someone who lived on an island.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,406 Americans carry the last name Delisle. That puts it at #8,261 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.29 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 77,793 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Delisle 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Delisle with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.4K
1 in 77,793
Census rank
#8,261
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,842 bearers of the surname Delisle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.29 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8261st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Delisle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Delisle
The surname Delisle has its origins in France, where it first emerged in the Middle Ages. The name is derived from the Old French phrase "de l'isle," meaning "from the island." This suggests that the earliest bearers of the name likely lived on an island or came from an area near an island.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a medieval census conducted in 1086 by William the Conqueror. The name appears as "de Insula," which is the Latin equivalent of "from the island." This entry indicates that the name was already in use among the Norman nobility in the 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, the name Delisle was particularly prevalent in the northern regions of France, such as Normandy and Brittany, where there were numerous islands and coastal areas. The name may have been initially adopted by families living on the islands off the coast or in coastal villages near islands.
One notable bearer of the name was Guillaume Delisle (1675-1726), a renowned French cartographer and geographer. He was born in Paris and is best known for his detailed maps of the Americas, which were highly influential in his time. His work helped to advance the understanding of the geography of the New World.
Another prominent figure with the surname Delisle was Joseph-Nicolas Delisle (1688-1768), a French astronomer and member of the French Academy of Sciences. He made significant contributions to the study of comets and was among the first to calculate the orbit of Halley's Comet.
In the 17th century, the name Delisle was also found in the records of the French colony of Acadia (present-day Nova Scotia and parts of New Brunswick). One example was Charles Delisle (born around 1635), who was among the early settlers in the region.
Other notable individuals with the surname Delisle include Claude Delisle (1644-1720), a French painter and engraver known for his landscapes and religious works, and Philippe Delisle (1949-2021), a Canadian politician who served as a member of the National Assembly of Quebec.
The name Delisle has been spelled in various ways throughout history, including de l'Isle, de l'Ile, and de Lisle. These variations reflect the different spellings and pronunciations used in different regions of France and the gradual evolution of the language over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Delisle
Among Census respondents with the surname Delisle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Delisle 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 Delisle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.1% · 3,424
- Two or more races3.8% · 147
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 138
- Black or African American1.7% · 64
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 43
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 26
Timeline
Historical Census data for Delisle
Delisle 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
#8,212
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,041
+154 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 1.37
Rank movement Down 313 places
2020
#8,261
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,842
-199 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.29
Rank movement Down 49 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,899 | 3,887 | 1.44 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,212 | 4,041 | 1.37 | +154 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 313 places |
| 2020 | #8,261 | 3,842 | 1.29 | -199 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 49 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 Delisle 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 | #8,212 | #8,261 | -0.6% |
| Count | 4,041 | 3,842 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.37 | 1.29 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Delisle bearers went from 4,041 to 3,842 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 49 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,212 to #8,261.
FAQ
Delisle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Delisle?
Name Census estimates that about 4,406 living Americans carry the surname Delisle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 77,793 residents.
How common is Delisle?
Delisle ranks #8,261 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.29 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 3,842 people with the surname Delisle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,406), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.29 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.29 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 Delisle.
Has Delisle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Delisle went from 4,041 recorded bearers to 3,842. That is a decrease of 199 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,212 to #8,261.
What does the Census say about the background of Delisle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Delisle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Delisle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.1% (3,424 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Delisle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.1%), Two or More Races (3.8%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Delisle (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 Delisle mean?
A French topographic surname referring to someone who lived on an island. 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 Delisle (1.29 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 Americans have the surname Delisle?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.