2000
#9,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,160
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.17
Rare Last name
Gaudette
A French occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold wooden casks or barrels.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,393 Americans carry the last name Gaudette. That puts it at #10,349 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.99 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 101,018 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gaudette 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
3.4K
1 in 101,018
Census rank
#10,349
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,959 bearers of the surname Gaudette in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.99 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10349th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaudette, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gaudette
The surname Gaudette originated in France, specifically in the region of Normandy. It is a toponymic surname, derived from a place name referring to a location where the original bearers of the name lived. The name is believed to have originated in the Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century.
The name Gaudette is thought to be derived from the Old French word "gaudir," which means "to enjoy" or "to rejoice." It is believed that the name may have been given to someone who lived in a pleasant or joyful place, or perhaps someone with a cheerful demeanor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Gaudette name can be found in the Domesday Book, a survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name is listed as "Gaudit," which is likely a variation of the modern spelling.
In the 14th century, there are records of a Simon Gaudette, a nobleman from Normandy who participated in the Hundred Years' War between England and France. Another notable bearer of the name was Jean Gaudette, a French explorer who accompanied Jacques Cartier on his voyages to Canada in the 16th century.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, many Gaudettes emigrated from France to Canada, particularly to the provinces of Quebec and Acadia. One of the earliest recorded Gaudettes in Canada was François Gaudette, who was born in 1644 in Quebec City.
Another notable figure with the Gaudette surname was Pierre-Amable Gaudette (1787-1856), a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada.
In the 19th century, a number of Gaudettes made their mark in various fields. For example, Louis-Napoléon Gaudette (1833-1904) was a Canadian physician and politician, while Joseph-Édouard Gaudette (1871-1942) was a notable French-Canadian writer and journalist.
Over the centuries, the Gaudette name has also been associated with various place names, such as Gaudette Island in Quebec, and the village of Gaudette in France's Normandy region, which likely took its name from the surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gaudette
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaudette, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Gaudette 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 Gaudette surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 2,740
- Two or more races3.1% · 93
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 75
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 25
- Black or African American0.6% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gaudette
Gaudette 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
#10,079
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,198
+38 bearers (+1.2%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Down 643 places
2020
#10,349
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,959
-239 bearers (-7.5%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 270 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,436 | 3,160 | 1.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,079 | 3,198 | 1.08 | +38 bearers (+1.2%) | Down 643 places |
| 2020 | #10,349 | 2,959 | 0.99 | -239 bearers (-7.5%) | Down 270 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 Gaudette 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 | #10,079 | #10,349 | -2.7% |
| Count | 3,198 | 2,959 | -7.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 0.99 | -8.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gaudette bearers went from 3,198 to 2,959 (-7.5% change). The surname moved down 270 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,079 to #10,349.
FAQ
Gaudette surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gaudette?
Name Census estimates that about 3,393 living Americans carry the surname Gaudette. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 101,018 residents.
How common is Gaudette?
Gaudette ranks #10,349 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.99 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,959 people with the surname Gaudette. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,393), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.99 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.99 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Gaudette.
Has Gaudette become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gaudette went from 3,198 recorded bearers to 2,959. That is a decrease of 239 (-7.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,079 to #10,349.
What does the Census say about the background of Gaudette?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaudette, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Gaudette in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (2,740 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gaudette appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Two or More Races (3.1%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Gaudette (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 Gaudette mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold wooden casks or barrels. 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 Gaudette (0.99 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 Gaudette?
See how many people have the surname Gaudette on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.