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

Jean, 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 Jean surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Jean in America

Jean is the 1703rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Jean surname appeared 21,140 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 7 people would have the surname Jean.

We can also compare 2010 data for Jean 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 Jean

The surname Jean originates from France, where it first emerged in the Middle Ages around the 12th century. It is derived from the medieval French given name "Jean," which itself comes from the Latin name "Ioannes," a variant of the Hebrew name "Yochanan" meaning "Graced by God." The name Jean was widespread in France during the Middle Ages and was often used as a surname to identify individuals by their given name.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Jean can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landholdings in England compiled by order of William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears in various spellings, such as "Jewan" and "Jehan," reflecting the phonetic variations common in medieval times.

During the 13th century, the surname Jean became associated with several notable figures. One such individual was Jean de Meung (c. 1240-1305), a French poet and scholar best known for his contributions to the allegorical work "The Romance of the Rose." Another prominent bearer of the name was Jean de Joinville (c. 1224-1317), a medieval chronicler and biographer of King Louis IX of France.

In the 14th century, the surname Jean continued to be used by notable individuals, such as Jean Froissart (c. 1337-c. 1405), a renowned chronicler and poet who documented the Hundred Years' War between England and France. Another notable figure was Jean de Béthencourt (c. 1362-1425), a Norman explorer and conquistador who led the conquest of the Canary Islands in the early 15th century.

The 16th century saw the rise of Jean Calvin (1509-1564), a French theologian and reformer who played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation. His teachings and writings influenced the development of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism, and his surname became closely associated with the Calvinistic branch of the Reformation.

As the surname Jean spread across France and beyond, it took on various local spellings and variations. For example, in the region of Brittany, the surname was sometimes rendered as "Gian" or "Gean," reflecting the local linguistic influences. Similarly, in other regions of France, the name might have been spelled as "Jehan," "Jehanne," or "Jehanne," among other variations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Jean

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

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 Jean 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 Jean 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 Jean was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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