2010
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Desonier
A French surname meaning someone from the place called Les Auniers.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 133 Americans carry the last name Desonier. That puts it at #145,028 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,577,100 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Desonier 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
133
1 in 2,577,100
Census rank
#145,028
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
116
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 116 bearers of the surname Desonier in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145028th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Desonier, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.2%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Desonier
The surname DESONIER is of French origin, originating from the Normandy region of northern France in the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French words "des" meaning "from" and "onnier" meaning "alder tree", suggesting that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near an alder grove or alder tree.
The earliest recorded instances of the DESONIER surname date back to the 12th and 13th centuries in various Norman records and charters. Variations in spelling were common during this era, with the name appearing as Desaunier, Desonnier, and Deshonnier among others.
One notable early bearer of the DESONIER name was Guillaume Desonnier, a Norman knight who participated in the Third Crusade under King Richard I of England in the late 12th century. Another was Jean Desonnier, a prominent merchant and landowner in the city of Rouen during the 14th century.
As the DESONIER family spread throughout France in subsequent centuries, the name became associated with various regional locations. For instance, the village of Desonnier in the Picardy region may have derived its name from an early DESONIER settler or landowner.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, several members of the DESONIER family achieved distinction in various fields. Jacques Desonier (1632-1709) was a renowned French theologian and author, while Pierre Desonier (1674-1738) was a respected architect who designed several notable churches and public buildings in Paris.
In the 19th century, Louis Desonier (1801-1876) was a prominent French politician and statesman who served as a deputy in the National Assembly and later as a senator. Marie Desonier (1832-1904), on the other hand, was a celebrated French novelist and poet whose works explored themes of love, loss, and societal change.
As the DESONIER name spread beyond France through emigration, it also took root in other parts of Europe and the Americas. Notable bearers of the name include Belgian artist Georges Desonier (1853-1918), whose paintings and sculptures are displayed in museums across Europe, and Canadian politician Paul Desonier (1888-1962), who served as a member of parliament for several terms in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Desonier
Among Census respondents with the surname Desonier, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.2%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Desonier 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 Desonier surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 107
- Hispanic or Latino5.2% · 6
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Desonier
Desonier 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
#145,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+14 bearers (+13.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 13,404 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #145,028 | 116 | 0.04 | +14 bearers (+13.7%) | Up 13,404 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 Desonier 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 | #158,432 | #145,028 | 8.5% |
| Count | 102 | 116 | 13.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 29.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Desonier bearers went from 102 to 116 (+13.7% change). The surname moved up 13,404 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #145,028.
FAQ
Desonier surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Desonier?
Name Census estimates that about 133 living Americans carry the surname Desonier. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,577,100 residents.
How common is Desonier?
Desonier ranks #145,028 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 116 people with the surname Desonier. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (133), 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 Desonier.
Has Desonier become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Desonier went from 102 recorded bearers to 116. That is an increase of 14 (+13.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #145,028.
What does the Census say about the background of Desonier?
Among Census respondents with the surname Desonier, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.2%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Desonier in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (107 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Desonier appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Hispanic (5.2%), Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Desonier (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 Desonier mean?
A French surname meaning someone from the place called Les Auniers. 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 Desonier (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 are called Desonier?
You can see how many people have the last name Desonier on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.