2000
#6,541
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,780
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.77
Rare Last name
Payan
A French occupational surname referring to a peasant or country dweller.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,536 Americans carry the last name Payan. That puts it at #5,847 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.91 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 52,441 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Payan 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Payan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.5K
1 in 52,441
Census rank
#5,847
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,700 bearers of the surname Payan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.91 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5847th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Payan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.1%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Two or More Races (0.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Payan
The surname Payan originated in France, with its earliest recorded instances dating back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Old French word "paien," which means "pagan" or "non-Christian." This suggests that the name may have initially been used to refer to someone who was not of the Christian faith or was perceived as such.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Jean Payan, a French Protestant who lived in the late 16th century. He was a member of the Huguenot community, which faced persecution in Catholic France during that time period. Records indicate that Jean Payan was forced to flee his home in Provence due to religious persecution.
In the 17th century, the name Payan appeared in the records of the French Protestant Church in London, indicating that some bearers of the name had sought refuge in England from religious persecution in France. One such individual was Pierre Payan, who was born in Marseille in 1632 and later settled in London.
The Payan name can also be found in historical records from the French region of Languedoc, particularly in the area around the city of Montpellier. One notable bearer of the name from this region was Jacques Payan, a 17th-century Protestant minister who was active in the Cévennes region during the French Wars of Religion.
In the 18th century, the name Payan appeared in the records of the French colony of Saint-Domingue (now Haiti). One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name in this region was Jean-Baptiste Payan, a plantation owner who was born in Marseille in 1725 and later settled in Saint-Domingue.
Another notable figure with the surname Payan was Pierre Payan, a French revolutionary who lived during the late 18th century. He was a member of the Jacobin Club and played a role in the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution. Pierre Payan was born in Marseille in 1766 and was executed by guillotine in 1794.
Other historical figures with the surname Payan include:
- Juan Payan (1590-1670), a Spanish poet and playwright from Seville.
- Francisco Payan (1711-1789), a Spanish painter known for his religious works.
- Emilio Payan (1855-1928), a Mexican politician and diplomat who served as Governor of Puebla.
- Margarita Payan (1901-1985), a Colombian writer and poet known for her works exploring themes of feminism and social justice.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Payan
Among Census respondents with the surname Payan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.1%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Two or More Races (0.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Payan 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 Payan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.1% · 5,248
- White6.4% · 364
- Two or more races0.6% · 34
- Black or African American0.6% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Payan
Payan 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
#5,403
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,443
+1,663 bearers (+34.8%)
Per 100,000 2.18
Rank movement Up 1,138 places
2020
#5,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,700
-743 bearers (-11.5%)
Per 100,000 1.91
Rank movement Down 444 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,541 | 4,780 | 1.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,403 | 6,443 | 2.18 | +1,663 bearers (+34.8%) | Up 1,138 places |
| 2020 | #5,847 | 5,700 | 1.91 | -743 bearers (-11.5%) | Down 444 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 Payan 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 | #5,403 | #5,847 | -8.2% |
| Count | 6,443 | 5,700 | -11.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.18 | 1.91 | -12.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Payan bearers went from 6,443 to 5,700 (-11.5% change). The surname moved down 444 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,403 to #5,847.
FAQ
Payan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Payan?
Name Census estimates that about 6,536 living Americans carry the surname Payan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 52,441 residents.
How common is Payan?
Payan ranks #5,847 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.91 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,700 people with the surname Payan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,536), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.91 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.91 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Payan.
Has Payan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Payan went from 6,443 recorded bearers to 5,700. That is a decrease of 743 (-11.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,403 to #5,847.
What does the Census say about the background of Payan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Payan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.1%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Two or More Races (0.6%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Payan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (5,248 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Payan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.1%), White (6.4%), Two or More Races (0.6%). 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 Payan (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 Payan mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a peasant or country dweller. 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 Payan (1.91 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 Payan?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Payan at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.