2000
#12,112
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,361
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Gremillion
A French surname derived from grémillon, referring to a person with a crop of curly or untidy hair.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,631 Americans carry the last name Gremillion. That puts it at #12,817 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 130,275 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gremillion 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
2.6K
1 in 130,275
Census rank
#12,817
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,294 bearers of the surname Gremillion in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12817th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gremillion, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gremillion
The surname Gremillion originated in France during the Middle Ages. It is believed to have evolved from the Old French word "gremel," which meant "small" or "thin." This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a nickname or descriptive name for a slender person.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gremillion can be found in the 13th-century French manuscript "Le Livre des Métiers d'Étienne Boileau." This document, which provided a detailed account of the various trades and professions in Paris at the time, mentions a certain "Jehan Gremillon," who was a tailor.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Gremillion began to spread beyond the borders of France. Records show that individuals bearing this surname had migrated to other parts of Europe, including the Netherlands and Germany.
In the late 17th century, a family by the name of Gremillion settled in the French colony of Acadia, which is now part of eastern Canada. One of the earliest known members of this family was Pierre Gremillion, born around 1670 in the village of Port-Royal.
As the Gremillion family continued to grow and expand, some of its members eventually made their way to the French territories of Louisiana in the early 18th century. One notable individual was Jean-Baptiste Gremillion, who was born in 1715 in Mobile, Alabama, and later became a prominent planter and landowner in the Opelousas region of Louisiana.
Throughout the centuries, the Gremillion surname has been associated with various notable figures. One such individual was Jean-Baptiste Gremillion (1786-1859), a French-born soldier who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and later settled in Louisiana, where he became a successful businessman and landowner.
Another prominent Gremillion was Léon Gremillion (1855-1924), a Louisiana-born businessman and politician who served as a member of the Louisiana State Senate in the early 20th century.
In more recent times, the name Gremillion has been carried by individuals such as Hilda Gremillion (1905-1994), an American artist and painter known for her works depicting scenes from the American South, and Elijah Gremillion (born 1982), an American musician and songwriter.
Gremillion is a surname that has its roots in France, where it likely originated as a descriptive name or nickname. Over the centuries, it has spread to various parts of the world, including North America, where it has been borne by several notable individuals in fields ranging from politics and business to the arts and music.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gremillion
Among Census respondents with the surname Gremillion, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Gremillion 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 Gremillion surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.6% · 1,895
- Black or African American11.2% · 256
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 65
- Two or more races2.7% · 62
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gremillion
Gremillion 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
#12,916
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,380
+19 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.81
Rank movement Down 804 places
2020
#12,817
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,294
-86 bearers (-3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Up 99 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,112 | 2,361 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,916 | 2,380 | 0.81 | +19 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 804 places |
| 2020 | #12,817 | 2,294 | 0.77 | -86 bearers (-3.6%) | Up 99 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 Gremillion 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 | #12,916 | #12,817 | 0.8% |
| Count | 2,380 | 2,294 | -3.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.81 | 0.77 | -5.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gremillion bearers went from 2,380 to 2,294 (-3.6% change). The surname moved up 99 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,916 to #12,817.
FAQ
Gremillion surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gremillion?
Name Census estimates that about 2,631 living Americans carry the surname Gremillion. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 130,275 residents.
How common is Gremillion?
Gremillion ranks #12,817 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.77 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 2,294 people with the surname Gremillion. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,631), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.77 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 Gremillion.
Has Gremillion become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gremillion went from 2,380 recorded bearers to 2,294. That is a decrease of 86 (-3.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,916 to #12,817.
What does the Census say about the background of Gremillion?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gremillion, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Black (11.2%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Gremillion in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.6% (1,895 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gremillion appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.6%), Black (11.2%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Gremillion (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 Gremillion mean?
A French surname derived from grémillon, referring to a person with a crop of curly or untidy hair. 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 Gremillion (0.77 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 Gremillion?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.