2010
#154,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kyrouac
A variant spelling of the French surname Kerouac, derived from a Breton placename.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Kyrouac. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kyrouac 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Kyrouac in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kyrouac, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kyrouac
The surname KYROUAC has its origins in the Brittany region of northwestern France, dating back to the early medieval period around the 9th century. It is derived from the Old Breton words "ker," meaning house or village, and "ouac," which was a personal name or descriptor. The name likely referred to someone who lived in a particular village or settlement associated with the person named Ouac.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name KYROUAC can be found in the Cartulary of Redon, a medieval manuscript from Brittany that contains charters and documents dating back to the 9th century. The name appears in various spellings, such as "Kerouac" and "Kirouac," reflecting the evolving orthography of the time.
In the 12th century, a knight named Guilhem Kyrouac is mentioned in the records of the Duchy of Brittany, indicating the name's association with the nobility of the region. Another notable figure was Jean Kyrouac, a merchant and landowner from the town of Quimper, who lived in the late 15th century.
As the name spread beyond Brittany, it underwent further variations in spelling. In the 16th century, the Kyrouac family established itself in the neighboring region of Normandy, where the name was sometimes rendered as "Kerouack" or "Kerouacq."
One of the earliest known bearers of the name in North America was Pierre Kyrouac, a French immigrant who settled in Quebec, Canada, in the late 17th century. His descendants went on to establish themselves in various parts of Quebec and the United States.
Among the notable individuals with the surname KYROUAC throughout history are:
1. Jacques Kyrouac (1685-1760), a farmer and landowner in Quebec, Canada.
2. Marie-Anne Kyrouac (1720-1795), a prominent figure in the early French-Canadian community of Quebec.
3. François Kyrouac (1745-1812), a soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War.
4. Jean-Baptiste Kyrouac (1780-1853), a merchant and businessman in Quebec City.
5. Jack Kerouac (1922-1969), the renowned American novelist and poet of French-Canadian descent, best known for his works such as "On the Road" and "The Dharma Bums."
While the name KYROUAC may have evolved and adapted to different regions and time periods, its origins can be traced back to the rich cultural heritage of Brittany, where it first emerged as a distinctive surname with a strong connection to the local geography and people.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kyrouac
Among Census respondents with the surname Kyrouac, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kyrouac 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 Kyrouac surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.3% · 110
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kyrouac
Kyrouac appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+8 bearers (+7.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 7,686 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #154,907 | 105 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | +8 bearers (+7.6%) | Up 7,686 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 Kyrouac 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 | #154,907 | #147,221 | 5.0% |
| Count | 105 | 113 | 7.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kyrouac bearers went from 105 to 113 (+7.6% change). The surname moved up 7,686 positions in the national ranking, going from #154,907 to #147,221.
FAQ
Kyrouac surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kyrouac?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Kyrouac. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Kyrouac?
Kyrouac ranks #147,221 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 113 people with the surname Kyrouac. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Kyrouac.
Has Kyrouac become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kyrouac went from 105 recorded bearers to 113. That is an increase of 8 (+7.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #154,907 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Kyrouac?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kyrouac, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (0.9%). 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 Kyrouac in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.3% (110 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kyrouac appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.3%), Hispanic (1.8%), Two or More Races (0.9%). 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 Kyrouac (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 Kyrouac mean?
A variant spelling of the French surname Kerouac, derived from a Breton placename. 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 Kyrouac (0.04 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 Kyrouac?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.