2000
#3,331
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,849
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.65
Uncommon Last name
Garnett
A surname derived from a Norman French word meaning "pomegranate," likely referring to someone who grew or sold the fruit.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,585 Americans carry the last name Garnett. That puts it at #3,451 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 29,586 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Garnett 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 Garnett with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
12K
1 in 29,586
Census rank
#3,451
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
10K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,103 bearers of the surname Garnett in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3451st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Garnett, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.6%. The next largest groups are Black (36.8%) and Two or More Races (5.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Garnett
The surname Garnett is believed to have originated in England, with roots dating back to the Middle Ages. It is thought to be derived from the Old French word "garnet," which refers to the deep red gemstone of the same name. This suggests that the name may have initially been given as a descriptive nickname to someone with red hair or a ruddy complexion.
Garnett is also sometimes associated with the town of Guernsey, an island in the English Channel. While the connection is not definitive, some sources suggest that the name may have originated from this location, with early spellings including "Garnesey" or "Garnesy."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Garnett can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, which mention a "William Garnet." The name also appears in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273, where a "Robert Garnet" is listed.
The Garnett family has a long history in England, with several notable individuals bearing the name. One prominent figure was Thomas Garnett (c. 1575-1661), an English clergyman and academic who served as the headmaster of Ipswich School and later became a Canon of Norwich Cathedral.
Another famous Garnett was Richard Garnett (1835-1906), an English writer, librarian, and biographer. He served as the Keeper of Printed Books at the British Museum and was a prolific author, publishing works on English literature, biography, and literary criticism.
In the realm of politics, Robert Garnett (1819-1873) was a prominent figure in the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. He served as a general in the Confederate Army and was killed in action during the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863.
The Garnett name also has connections to the world of art and culture. Edward Garnett (1868-1937) was an influential English writer, literary critic, and publisher's reader. He played a significant role in promoting the works of authors such as D.H. Lawrence, Joseph Conrad, and W.B. Yeats.
Finally, one cannot overlook the contributions of Constance Garnett (1861-1946), an English translator who introduced many Russian literary masterpieces to the English-speaking world. Her translations of works by authors like Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Anton Chekhov were instrumental in popularizing Russian literature in the West.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Garnett
Among Census respondents with the surname Garnett, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.6%. The next largest groups are Black (36.8%) and Two or More Races (5.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Garnett 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 Garnett surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White52.6% · 5,316
- Black or African American36.8% · 3,714
- Two or more races5.7% · 571
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 382
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 74
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 46
Timeline
Historical Census data for Garnett
Garnett 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
#3,445
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,370
+521 bearers (+5.3%)
Per 100,000 3.52
Rank movement Down 114 places
2020
#3,451
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,103
-267 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 3.38
Rank movement Down 6 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,331 | 9,849 | 3.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,445 | 10,370 | 3.52 | +521 bearers (+5.3%) | Down 114 places |
| 2020 | #3,451 | 10,103 | 3.38 | -267 bearers (-2.6%) | Down 6 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 Garnett 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 | #3,445 | #3,451 | -0.2% |
| Count | 10,370 | 10,103 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 3.52 | 3.38 | -4.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Garnett bearers went from 10,370 to 10,103 (-2.6% change). The surname moved down 6 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,445 to #3,451.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Garnett
FAQ
Garnett surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Garnett?
Name Census estimates that about 11,585 living Americans carry the surname Garnett. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 29,586 residents.
How common is Garnett?
Garnett ranks #3,451 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.38 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 10,103 people with the surname Garnett. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,585), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.38 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Garnett.
Has Garnett become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Garnett went from 10,370 recorded bearers to 10,103. That is a decrease of 267 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,445 to #3,451.
What does the Census say about the background of Garnett?
Among Census respondents with the surname Garnett, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.6%. The next largest groups are Black (36.8%) and Two or More Races (5.7%). 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 Garnett in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.6% (5,316 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Garnett appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (52.6%), Black (36.8%), Two or More Races (5.7%). 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 Garnett (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 Garnett mean?
A surname derived from a Norman French word meaning "pomegranate," likely referring to someone who grew or sold the fruit. 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 Garnett (3.38 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 Garnett?
Find out how many people have the surname Garnett on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.