2000
#16,411
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,615
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.60
Rare Last name
Marceau
A French surname derived from Marceau, a diminutive form of the given name Marcus.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,769 Americans carry the last name Marceau. That puts it at #17,852 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.52 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 193,756 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Marceau 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
1.8K
1 in 193,756
Census rank
#17,852
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,543 bearers of the surname Marceau in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.52 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 17852nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Marceau, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (7.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Marceau
The surname Marceau has its origins in France, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old French name Marc, which in turn comes from the Latin name Marcus, meaning "belonging to Mars," the Roman god of war.
The name Marceau is thought to have originated in the northern regions of France, particularly in the provinces of Normandy and Picardy. It was likely first used as a surname in the 11th or 12th century, when hereditary surnames became more common in Europe.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Marceau can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and property in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears as "Marcellus," which was a common Latin variant of Marcus at the time.
In the 13th century, the name Marceau appeared in various records and manuscripts, often in connection with noble families or landowners. For instance, a Guillaume Marceau was mentioned in a charter from the Abbey of Cheminon in Normandy, dated 1247.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Marceau. One of the most famous was François Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers (1769-1796), a French revolutionary general who played a significant role in the French Revolutionary Wars.
Another notable figure was Jean Marceau (1920-2012), a French mime artist and actor who gained worldwide recognition for his performances and for popularizing the art of mime in the 20th century.
In the literary world, Félicien Victor Joseph Cauvain Marceau (1913-2012) was a French philosopher and author, best known for his philosophical essays and novels exploring themes of existentialism and the human condition.
The name Marceau has also been associated with several place names in France, such as the village of Marceau in the department of Sarthe, and the Marceau district in the city of Reims.
In the realm of sports, Jean-François Marceau (born 1975) was a professional ice hockey player from Canada who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for several teams, including the Montreal Canadiens and the New York Rangers.
While the surname Marceau is primarily French in origin, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through French migration and colonization in the Americas and other regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Marceau
Among Census respondents with the surname Marceau, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (7.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Marceau 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 Marceau surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.8% · 1,246
- American Indian and Alaska Native7.5% · 116
- Two or more races4.5% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 64
- Black or African American2.3% · 35
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Marceau
Marceau 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
#16,839
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,695
+80 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.57
Rank movement Down 428 places
2020
#17,852
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,543
-152 bearers (-9.0%)
Per 100,000 0.52
Rank movement Down 1,013 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,411 | 1,615 | 0.60 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #16,839 | 1,695 | 0.57 | +80 bearers (+5.0%) | Down 428 places |
| 2020 | #17,852 | 1,543 | 0.52 | -152 bearers (-9.0%) | Down 1,013 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 Marceau 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 | #16,839 | #17,852 | -6.0% |
| Count | 1,695 | 1,543 | -9.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.57 | 0.52 | -9.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Marceau bearers went from 1,695 to 1,543 (-9.0% change). The surname moved down 1,013 positions in the national ranking, going from #16,839 to #17,852.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Marceau
FAQ
Marceau surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Marceau?
Name Census estimates that about 1,769 living Americans carry the surname Marceau. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 193,756 residents.
How common is Marceau?
Marceau ranks #17,852 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.52 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 1,543 people with the surname Marceau. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,769), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.52 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.52 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 Marceau.
Has Marceau become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Marceau went from 1,695 recorded bearers to 1,543. That is a decrease of 152 (-9.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #16,839 to #17,852.
What does the Census say about the background of Marceau?
Among Census respondents with the surname Marceau, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (7.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Marceau in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.8% (1,246 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Marceau appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.8%), American Indian/Alaska Native (7.5%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Marceau (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 Marceau mean?
A French surname derived from Marceau, a diminutive form of the given name Marcus. 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 Marceau (0.52 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 Marceau?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.