2000
#49,159
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 402
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.15
Very Rare Last name
Maracle
A variation of the French surname Marréchal, meaning a farrier or marshal.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 493 Americans carry the last name Maracle. That puts it at #52,161 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.14 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 695,242 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Maracle 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
493
1 in 695,242
Census rank
#52,161
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
430
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 430 bearers of the surname Maracle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.14 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 52161st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Maracle, the largest self-reported group is White at 44.7%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (25.8%) and Two or More Races (22.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Maracle
The surname MARACLE originates from the Native American Mohawk tribe, one of the Six Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy in what is now New York and Canada. The name is believed to have derived from the Mohawk word "karakwineh," which means "in the light" or "in the clearing."
The earliest recorded instances of the MARACLE surname date back to the late 17th century, when French missionaries and fur traders began interacting with the Mohawk people. Some of the first documented individuals with this surname include Joseph Maracle, born around 1680, and his son, Pierre Maracle, born circa 1710.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, many MARACLE families lived on the Six Nations Reserve, located along the Grand River in Ontario, Canada. Notable individuals from this time period include Jacob Maracle (1787-1865), a respected Mohawk chief and interpreter, and his son, Jacob B. Maracle (1825-1897), who served as a Mohawk chief and played a role in negotiating land treaties.
One of the most prominent figures in MARACLE history is Oronhyatekha (born Seth Lyman Maracle, 1841-1907), a Mohawk physician and scholar who founded the Independent Order of Foresters, a fraternal organization that provided insurance and social support to its members. He was recognized for his contributions to medicine and Indigenous rights.
Other notable individuals with the MARACLE surname include artist and author Maracle Keesic (1898-1980), who helped preserve Mohawk culture and traditions, and Norma Maracle (1937-2021), a Mohawk educator and advocate for Indigenous language preservation.
The MARACLE name has also been found in various historical documents and records, such as colonial records, land deeds, and church registers, providing valuable insights into the lives and histories of those who bore this surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Maracle
Among Census respondents with the surname Maracle, the largest self-reported group is White at 44.7%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (25.8%) and Two or More Races (22.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Maracle 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 Maracle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White44.7% · 192
- American Indian and Alaska Native25.8% · 111
- Two or more races22.1% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino5.3% · 23
- Black or African American1.2% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Maracle
Maracle 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
#52,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 399
-3 bearers (-0.7%)
Per 100,000 0.14
Rank movement Down 2,878 places
2020
#52,161
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 430
+31 bearers (+7.8%)
Per 100,000 0.14
Rank movement Down 124 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #49,159 | 402 | 0.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #52,037 | 399 | 0.14 | -3 bearers (-0.7%) | Down 2,878 places |
| 2020 | #52,161 | 430 | 0.14 | +31 bearers (+7.8%) | Down 124 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 Maracle 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 | #52,037 | #52,161 | -0.2% |
| Count | 399 | 430 | 7.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.14 | 0.14 | 2.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Maracle bearers went from 399 to 430 (+7.8% change). The surname moved down 124 positions in the national ranking, going from #52,037 to #52,161.
FAQ
Maracle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Maracle?
Name Census estimates that about 493 living Americans carry the surname Maracle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 695,242 residents.
How common is Maracle?
Maracle ranks #52,161 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.14 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 430 people with the surname Maracle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (493), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.14 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.14 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 Maracle.
Has Maracle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Maracle went from 399 recorded bearers to 430. That is an increase of 31 (+7.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #52,037 to #52,161.
What does the Census say about the background of Maracle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Maracle, the largest self-reported group is White at 44.7%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (25.8%) and Two or More Races (22.1%). 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 Maracle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 44.7% (192 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Maracle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (44.7%), American Indian/Alaska Native (25.8%), Two or More Races (22.1%). 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 Maracle (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 Maracle mean?
A variation of the French surname Marréchal, meaning a farrier or marshal. 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 Maracle (0.14 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 have the last name Maracle?
See how common the surname Maracle is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.