2000
#13,052
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,152
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.80
Rare Last name
Lafreniere
A French occupational surname referring to a saddler, harness-maker, or maker of horse tack.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,414 Americans carry the last name Lafreniere. That puts it at #13,760 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 141,986 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lafreniere 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
2.4K
1 in 141,986
Census rank
#13,760
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,105 bearers of the surname Lafreniere in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13760th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafreniere, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lafreniere
The surname Lafreniere originated in France, specifically in the region of Normandy. It is thought to have emerged during the late Middle Ages, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is derived from the Old French words "la" meaning "the" and "freniere" meaning "ash tree," suggesting that the name initially referred to someone who lived near or by an ash tree.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lafreniere can be found in the Livre Terrien de Philippe d'Évreux, a medieval land registry from the late 13th century. This document mentions a certain "Richart de la Freniere," indicating that the name was already in use at that time. Additionally, the name appears in various other medieval records and documents from Normandy and neighboring regions.
In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the name Lafreniere was Jean Lafreniere, a merchant and landowner from the town of Lisieux in Normandy. He was born in 1523 and played an important role in the local economy and politics of the time.
During the 17th century, the Lafreniere family began to spread across different parts of France, with some members even emigrating to the French colonies in North America, particularly in what is now Quebec and Acadia. One of the earliest settlers in New France was Jacques Lafreniere, who arrived in Quebec City in 1634 and became a prominent figure in the colony's fur trade.
In the 18th century, a notable member of the Lafreniere family was Louis-Joseph Lafreniere, a French naval officer and explorer. He was born in Brest in 1728 and participated in several expeditions to the Pacific Ocean, including voyages to the Hawaiian Islands and the Pacific Northwest.
Another significant figure in the history of the Lafreniere name was François Lafreniere, a French Revolutionary who played an active role in the events of the French Revolution. Born in Paris in 1758, he was a member of the Jacobin Club and served as a deputy in the National Convention.
As the Lafreniere family continued to grow and spread throughout the centuries, the name also underwent some variations in spelling, such as Lafresniere, Lafrenaye, and Lafrenière. However, the core meaning and origin of the name remained the same, tracing back to the old Norman French words related to ash trees.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lafreniere
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafreniere, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Lafreniere 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 Lafreniere surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 1,938
- Two or more races3.3% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 65
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 12
- Black or African American0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lafreniere
Lafreniere 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
#13,967
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,159
+7 bearers (+0.3%)
Per 100,000 0.73
Rank movement Down 915 places
2020
#13,760
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,105
-54 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Up 207 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,052 | 2,152 | 0.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,967 | 2,159 | 0.73 | +7 bearers (+0.3%) | Down 915 places |
| 2020 | #13,760 | 2,105 | 0.70 | -54 bearers (-2.5%) | Up 207 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 Lafreniere 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 | #13,967 | #13,760 | 1.5% |
| Count | 2,159 | 2,105 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.73 | 0.70 | -3.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lafreniere bearers went from 2,159 to 2,105 (-2.5% change). The surname moved up 207 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,967 to #13,760.
FAQ
Lafreniere surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lafreniere?
Name Census estimates that about 2,414 living Americans carry the surname Lafreniere. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 141,986 residents.
How common is Lafreniere?
Lafreniere ranks #13,760 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.70 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 2,105 people with the surname Lafreniere. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,414), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.70 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 Lafreniere.
Has Lafreniere become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lafreniere went from 2,159 recorded bearers to 2,105. That is a decrease of 54 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,967 to #13,760.
What does the Census say about the background of Lafreniere?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafreniere, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Lafreniere in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (1,938 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lafreniere appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Lafreniere (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 Lafreniere mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a saddler, harness-maker, or maker of horse tack. 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 Lafreniere (0.70 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 common is the surname Lafreniere?
You can see how many people have the surname Lafreniere on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.