2000
#128,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Montle
A surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Montle. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Montle 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Montle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Montle, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.8%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Montle
The surname MONTLE originates from France, first appearing in records during the late 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "mont", meaning hill or mountain, combined with a diminutive suffix "-le". This suggests the name may have referred to someone who lived near a small hill or elevated area.
Early variations of the spelling included Montlee, Montle, and Montlé. The name appears in several medieval French manuscripts, including a 1487 land registry in the village of Montoire-sur-le-Loir, where a family with the surname Montle is mentioned as owning a small vineyard.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname was Jacques Montle, born around 1520 in the Normandy region of France. He was a farmer and landowner, as noted in local tax records from the mid-16th century.
In the 17th century, the name appears in various church records across northern France, including the baptism of Marie Montle in 1632 in the town of Rouen. Another notable bearer was Pierre Montle, a merchant and trader born in 1671 in Calais, who is mentioned in several shipping manifests from the late 1600s.
During the French Revolution, a prominent figure named François Montle, born in 1755 in Paris, served as a captain in the Revolutionary Army and fought in several battles against the monarchist forces.
As the name spread across Europe, it also appeared in other countries. For example, in England, a family called Mountle is recorded in the 1676 Hearth Tax returns for the county of Dorset.
Other notable individuals with the MONTLE surname include the 19th-century French author and poet, Louis Montle (1822-1892), and the German-born artist and engraver, Heinrich Montle (1876-1944), whose works were exhibited in several galleries across Europe in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Montle
Among Census respondents with the surname Montle, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.8%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Montle 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 Montle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.5% · 94
- Black or African American8.8% · 10
- Two or more races3.5% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Montle
Montle 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
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
-19 bearers (-15.6%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 28,437 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+11 bearers (+10.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,739 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #128,797 | 122 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | -19 bearers (-15.6%) | Down 28,437 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+10.7%) | Up 10,739 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 Montle 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 | #157,234 | #146,495 | 6.8% |
| Count | 103 | 114 | 10.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 27.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Montle bearers went from 103 to 114 (+10.7% change). The surname moved up 10,739 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #146,495.
FAQ
Montle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Montle?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Montle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Montle?
Montle ranks #146,495 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 114 people with the surname Montle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), 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 Montle.
Has Montle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Montle went from 103 recorded bearers to 114. That is an increase of 11 (+10.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Montle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Montle, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.8%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Montle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.5% (94 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Montle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.5%), Black (8.8%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Montle (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 Montle mean?
A surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a place name. 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 Montle (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 are called Montle?
Want to know how many people have the surname Montle? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.