2000
#134,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Flahaut
A French surname possibly derived from the Old French word "flahaude" meaning flabby or flaccid.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Flahaut. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Flahaut 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Flahaut in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Flahaut, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.0%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Flahaut
The surname Flahaut originates from France, tracing its roots back to the early medieval period. It is derived from the Old French words "flahaut" or "flahau," which referred to a type of wind instrument similar to a flute or piccolo.
This surname likely emerged as a descriptive name or nickname for someone who played or manufactured such instruments. The earliest known references to the name can be found in documents from the 12th and 13th centuries in northern France.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Flahaut name appears in the Cartulaire de Notre-Dame de Paris, a collection of charters and deeds from the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris, dating back to the late 12th century.
Another notable early mention of the name is found in the Livre des bourgeois de Reims, a register of citizens from the city of Reims, which includes entries for individuals with the surname Flahaut from the 13th century.
In the 14th century, the name appears in various records and documents from the region of Picardy, suggesting a concentration of Flahauts in this area of northern France during that time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Flahaut surname was Jean Flahaut, a musician and composer who lived in Paris in the late 14th century and is mentioned in contemporary accounts as a skilled performer on the flute.
During the 15th century, the name Flahaut can be found in records from the city of Lille, where a family of that name held prominent positions in the local government and trade guilds.
In the 16th century, a notable figure named Antoine Flahaut (1504-1573) was a French Protestant theologian and author who played a significant role in the early years of the Reformation in France.
The 17th century saw the rise of a distinguished military family with the Flahaut surname, including François de Flahaut (1618-1697), a French general who served under Louis XIV and played a crucial role in the Battle of Seneffe during the Franco-Dutch War.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, several members of the Flahaut family achieved notable positions in French society, including Auguste de Flahaut (1785-1870), a French general and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs under King Louis-Philippe.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Flahaut
Among Census respondents with the surname Flahaut, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.0%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Flahaut 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 Flahaut surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.8% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino7.0% · 8
- Two or more races3.5% · 4
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Flahaut
Flahaut 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
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-8 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 17,495 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+7 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,775 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,037 | 116 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 17,495 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.5%) | Up 5,775 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 Flahaut 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 | #151,532 | #145,757 | 3.8% |
| Count | 108 | 115 | 6.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Flahaut bearers went from 108 to 115 (+6.5% change). The surname moved up 5,775 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #145,757.
FAQ
Flahaut surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Flahaut?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Flahaut. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Flahaut?
Flahaut ranks #145,757 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 115 people with the surname Flahaut. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), 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 Flahaut.
Has Flahaut become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Flahaut went from 108 recorded bearers to 115. That is an increase of 7 (+6.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Flahaut?
Among Census respondents with the surname Flahaut, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.0%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Flahaut in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.8% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Flahaut appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.8%), Hispanic (7.0%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Flahaut (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 Flahaut mean?
A French surname possibly derived from the Old French word "flahaude" meaning flabby or flaccid. 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 Flahaut (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 Flahaut?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Flahaut on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.