Find out how popular the last name Guilbeau is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Guilbeau.

Guilbeau, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Guilbeau surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Guilbeau in America

Guilbeau is the 17290th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Guilbeau surname appeared 1,637 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Guilbeau.

We can also compare 2010 data for Guilbeau to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Guilbeau

The surname Guilbeau has its origins in France, specifically in the region of Poitou. It is believed to have emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century. The name is derived from the Germanic personal name Willebaud, which translates to "resolute protector" or "brave promise."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Guilbeau surname can be found in the Livre des Bourgeois de Gand, a medieval document from the 13th century. This document mentions an individual named Johannes Willebaut, which is likely an early spelling variation of the name.

In the 16th century, the Guilbeau name appeared in the parish records of Saint-Maixent-l'École, a town located in the Poitou region of France. These records indicate that the family had established roots in the area by this time.

Notable individuals bearing the Guilbeau surname include Pierre Guilbeau (1615-1678), a French merchant and landowner who was instrumental in the early settlement of Acadia, now part of Canada. Another notable figure was Jacques Guilbeau (1742-1824), a French soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War alongside the Marquis de Lafayette.

In the 19th century, Jean-Baptiste Guilbeau (1801-1879) was a prominent figure in the Cajun community of Louisiana, having migrated from France to the region. He was known for his contributions to preserving Cajun culture and traditions.

Moving forward in time, Émile Guilbeau (1877-1945) was a French educator and writer who authored several books on the history and culture of the Poitou region. Additionally, René Guilbeau (1920-2005) was a French-Canadian artist renowned for his landscape paintings depicting the rural scenery of Quebec.

While the Guilbeau surname has its roots in France, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including Canada, the United States, and other countries with French colonial influences or significant French populations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Guilbeau

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Guilbeau.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Guilbeau was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Guilbeau has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Guilbeau was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Guilbeau, please contact us.

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