2000
#62,236
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 301
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.11
Very Rare Last name
Flair
A French surname originally meaning "graceful" or "stylish."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 335 Americans carry the last name Flair. That puts it at #71,896 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.10 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,023,147 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Flair 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
335
1 in 1,023,147
Census rank
#71,896
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
292
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 292 bearers of the surname Flair in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.10 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 71896th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Flair, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and Black (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Flair
The surname Flair is believed to have originated in France during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French word "fleur," meaning "flower." This name was likely given to someone who lived near a flower garden or worked with flowers in some capacity.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Flair can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a record of landowners and tenants in England at the time. The entry lists a person named "Robertus de Fleur" as holding land in Hertfordshire.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various spellings, such as "Flur," "Fleure," and "Flore," in various records and documents across France and England.
During the 14th century, a notable figure named Jean Flair (1310-1382) was a renowned French poet and author. He is credited with writing several influential works that contributed to the development of French literature during the Middle Ages.
Another prominent individual with this surname was Sir Robert Flair (1520-1591), an English nobleman and military commander who served under Queen Elizabeth I. He played a significant role in the English victory against the Spanish Armada in 1588.
In the 17th century, a French artist named Marguerite Flair (1635-1705) gained recognition for her exquisite floral paintings and botanical illustrations. Her works were highly prized by the French nobility and are now housed in various art museums across Europe.
During the 18th century, a Scottish philosopher and historian named David Flair (1711-1776) made significant contributions to the Scottish Enlightenment movement. His writings on moral philosophy and political economy were widely influential during that time.
In the 19th century, a French inventor named Louis Flair (1830-1897) is credited with developing an early form of the modern bicycle. His innovative design, which featured a pedal-powered mechanism, revolutionized personal transportation at the time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Flair
Among Census respondents with the surname Flair, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and Black (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Flair 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 Flair surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.5% · 241
- Two or more races6.2% · 18
- Black or African American4.8% · 14
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.4% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Flair
Flair 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
#67,126
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 294
-7 bearers (-2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.10
Rank movement Down 4,890 places
2020
#71,896
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 292
-2 bearers (-0.7%)
Per 100,000 0.10
Rank movement Down 4,770 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #62,236 | 301 | 0.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #67,126 | 294 | 0.10 | -7 bearers (-2.3%) | Down 4,890 places |
| 2020 | #71,896 | 292 | 0.10 | -2 bearers (-0.7%) | Down 4,770 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 Flair 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 | #67,126 | #71,896 | -7.1% |
| Count | 294 | 292 | -0.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.10 | 0.10 | -2.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Flair bearers went from 294 to 292 (-0.7% change). The surname moved down 4,770 positions in the national ranking, going from #67,126 to #71,896.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Flair
FAQ
Flair surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Flair?
Name Census estimates that about 335 living Americans carry the surname Flair. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,023,147 residents.
How common is Flair?
Flair ranks #71,896 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.10 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 292 people with the surname Flair. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (335), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.10 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 Flair.
Has Flair become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Flair went from 294 recorded bearers to 292. That is a decrease of 2 (-0.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #67,126 to #71,896.
What does the Census say about the background of Flair?
Among Census respondents with the surname Flair, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.2%) and Black (4.8%). 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 Flair in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.5% (241 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Flair appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.5%), Two or More Races (6.2%), Black (4.8%). 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 Flair (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 Flair mean?
A French surname originally meaning "graceful" or "stylish." 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 Flair (0.10 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 Flair?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.