2000
#10,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,722
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.01
Rare Last name
Gautreaux
A French toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "little stream" or "little waterway."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,116 Americans carry the last name Gautreaux. That puts it at #11,147 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 109,998 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gautreaux 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
3.1K
1 in 109,998
Census rank
#11,147
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,717 bearers of the surname Gautreaux in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11147th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gautreaux, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gautreaux
The surname Gautreaux has its origins in France, dating back to the Middle Ages. It is a locational name, derived from the French placename Gautretot, a small village in the commune of Pavilly in the Normandy region of northern France.
The name is believed to have evolved from the Old French words "gaut" and "roi," which translate to "wood" and "king," respectively. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near or owned a wooded area belonging to a king or lord.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Livre Terrier de Philippe d'Alençon, a medieval manuscript from the 13th century, where it is spelled as "Gautretot." This document was a survey of landholdings and properties in the region of Normandy.
In the 17th century, many French families with the surname Gautreaux immigrated to Canada, particularly to the province of Acadia (now Nova Scotia and parts of New Brunswick). This was a result of the French colonization efforts in North America at the time. One notable figure was Michel Gautreaux, born in 1661 in Port-Royal, Acadia, who was among the earliest settlers in the region.
Another significant individual was Jacques Gautreaux, born in 1675 in Port-Royal, Acadia. He was a farmer and landowner, and his descendants can be traced throughout the Acadian and Cajun communities of Canada and Louisiana.
Following the Great Expulsion of the Acadians from Canada in the 1750s, many families with the surname Gautreaux settled in Louisiana, where the name became associated with the Cajun culture. Jean-Baptiste Gautreaux, born in 1737 in Acadia, was among the early Acadian settlers in Louisiana after the expulsion.
In France, the name Gautreaux has been documented in various historical records, including the Cahiers de l'État Civil (civil registration records) from the 16th to 18th centuries. One notable French figure was Pierre Gautreaux, a merchant and landowner born in 1698 in Bordeaux.
Over the centuries, the name has been spelled in various ways, including Gautreaux, Gautreau, Gautrot, and Gautrot-Tremblay, reflecting regional variations and linguistic evolutions. Despite these variations, the name's roots can be traced back to the village of Gautretot in Normandy, France.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gautreaux
Among Census respondents with the surname Gautreaux, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Gautreaux 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 Gautreaux surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.7% · 2,301
- Hispanic or Latino9.0% · 245
- Two or more races3.1% · 84
- Black or African American2.1% · 57
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gautreaux
Gautreaux 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
#11,348
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,780
+58 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Down 591 places
2020
#11,147
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,717
-63 bearers (-2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Up 201 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,757 | 2,722 | 1.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,348 | 2,780 | 0.94 | +58 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 591 places |
| 2020 | #11,147 | 2,717 | 0.91 | -63 bearers (-2.3%) | Up 201 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 Gautreaux 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 | #11,348 | #11,147 | 1.8% |
| Count | 2,780 | 2,717 | -2.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.91 | -3.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gautreaux bearers went from 2,780 to 2,717 (-2.3% change). The surname moved up 201 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,348 to #11,147.
FAQ
Gautreaux surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gautreaux?
Name Census estimates that about 3,116 living Americans carry the surname Gautreaux. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 109,998 residents.
How common is Gautreaux?
Gautreaux ranks #11,147 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.91 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 2,717 people with the surname Gautreaux. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,116), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.91 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.91 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 Gautreaux.
Has Gautreaux become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gautreaux went from 2,780 recorded bearers to 2,717. That is a decrease of 63 (-2.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,348 to #11,147.
What does the Census say about the background of Gautreaux?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gautreaux, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Gautreaux in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.7% (2,301 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gautreaux appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.7%), Hispanic (9.0%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Gautreaux (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 Gautreaux mean?
A French toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "little stream" or "little waterway." 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 Gautreaux (0.91 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 have the surname Gautreaux?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.