2000
#149,328
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Garnaat
A Dutch locational surname referring to a person from the town of Geertruidenberg.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Garnaat. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Garnaat 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Garnaat in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Garnaat, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.3%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Garnaat
The surname GARNAAT is believed to have originated in the Netherlands, likely in the 16th or 17th century. It is derived from the Dutch word "garnaat," which means "garnet," a semi-precious gemstone. The name may have been given to someone who worked with garnets or lived near a place where garnets were found.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the GARNAAT surname dates back to the late 16th century in the Dutch province of Zeeland. In a census record from 1598, a certain Pieter GARNAAT was listed as a resident of the town of Middelburg.
In the 17th century, the name GARNAAT appears in various Dutch records, including church registers and tax rolls. In 1624, a Jan GARNAAT was mentioned in a land deed in the city of Amsterdam. Another notable bearer of the name was Dirk GARNAAT, a merchant from Rotterdam who lived from 1635 to 1702.
As the Dutch established colonies in various parts of the world, the GARNAAT surname began to spread beyond the Netherlands. In the late 17th century, a family with the surname GARNAAT settled in the Dutch Cape Colony, which is now part of South Africa.
One of the earliest references to the GARNAAT name in English records comes from the 18th century. In 1782, a Dutch immigrant named Willem GARNAAT was recorded as a resident of London.
Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, several individuals with the GARNAAT surname made notable contributions in various fields. One such individual was Cornelis GARNAAT (1815-1892), a Dutch painter and lithographer who was renowned for his landscapes and cityscapes.
Another notable bearer of the name was Hendrik GARNAAT (1867-1923), a Dutch architect who designed several iconic buildings in Amsterdam, including the Beurs van Berlage, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In the field of literature, Johanna GARNAAT (1878-1956) was a Dutch writer and poet who published several collections of poems and short stories during her lifetime.
Moving into the 20th century, Adriaan GARNAAT (1901-1987) was a Dutch physicist who made significant contributions to the field of nuclear physics. He worked at the University of Leiden and was involved in research related to nuclear fission.
Finally, Gerrit GARNAAT (1923-2008) was a Dutch-born American artist known for his abstract expressionist paintings. He immigrated to the United States in the 1950s and spent much of his career in New York City.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Garnaat
Among Census respondents with the surname Garnaat, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.3%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Garnaat 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 Garnaat surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.2% · 97
- Two or more races7.3% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Garnaat
Garnaat 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
+7 bearers (+6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,204 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
+2 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 2,086 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #149,328 | 101 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.9%) | Down 2,204 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.9%) | Up 2,086 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 Garnaat 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 | #149,446 | 1.4% |
| Count | 108 | 110 | 1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Garnaat bearers went from 108 to 110 (+1.9% change). The surname moved up 2,086 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #149,446.
FAQ
Garnaat surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Garnaat?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Garnaat. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Garnaat?
Garnaat ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Garnaat. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Garnaat.
Has Garnaat become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Garnaat went from 108 recorded bearers to 110. That is an increase of 2 (+1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Garnaat?
Among Census respondents with the surname Garnaat, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.3%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%). 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 Garnaat in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.2% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Garnaat appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.2%), Two or More Races (7.3%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%). 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 Garnaat (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 Garnaat mean?
A Dutch locational surname referring to a person from the town of Geertruidenberg. 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 Garnaat (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 share the surname Garnaat?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.