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

Jeu, 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 Jeu surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Jeu in America

Jeu is the 116201st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Jeu surname appeared 150 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Jeu.

We can also compare 2010 data for Jeu 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 Jeu

The surname "Jeu" is believed to have originated in France, where it first appeared in the 12th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old French word "jeu," which means "game" or "play." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who was involved in some form of entertainment or leisure activity, such as a performer or a jester.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various medieval documents from the regions of Normandy and Brittany in northern France. For example, a man named Robert Jeu was mentioned in a charter from the town of Avranches in 1185. Another early reference is to a Guillaume Jeu, who was listed as a landholder in the parish of Saint-Malo in Brittany in 1213.

During the Middle Ages, the name appears to have spread to other parts of France, as well as to neighboring regions such as Flanders and Burgundy. In the 14th century, a Jean Jeu was recorded as a merchant in the city of Bruges, which was then part of the County of Flanders. Around the same time, a Philippe Jeu was mentioned in a legal document from the Duchy of Burgundy.

One notable figure with the surname Jeu was Pierre Jeu, a French poet and playwright who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was born in Paris in 1558 and is best known for his comedic plays, which satirized the social and political issues of his time.

Another individual of note was Marie-Anne Jeu, a French actress and singer who performed on the stages of Paris in the early 18th century. She was born in 1695 and gained fame for her roles in opera and theater productions during the reign of King Louis XV.

In the 19th century, a prominent member of the Jeu family was Édouard Jeu, a French military officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars. He was born in 1786 and rose to the rank of General in Napoleon's army, participating in several major battles, including the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.

While the surname Jeu has its roots in France, it has also been found in other parts of Europe over the centuries. For instance, there are records of individuals with the name Jeu in Germany, Belgium, and Switzerland, likely due to migration and intermarriage between families from different regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Jeu

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!