2010
#138,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Pigee
A surname derived from an Old French word meaning "pigeon".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Pigee. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pigee 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Pigee in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pigee, the largest self-reported group is Black at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.3%) and White (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pigee
The surname Pigee is believed to have originated in France during the Middle Ages. It is thought to have derived from the Old French word "pigeon," which referred to the bird. The name may have been initially given as a nickname to someone who raised or kept pigeons, or it could have been an occupational surname for a person involved in pigeon breeding or pigeon trading.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Pigee can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landholdings and properties in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name was spelled as "Pigot" and was likely brought to England by Norman settlers after the Norman Conquest in 1066.
In the 13th century, there are records of a family named Pigee residing in the village of Pigé, located in the Normandy region of France. This place name may have influenced the spelling variation of the surname.
Notable individuals with the surname Pigee include:
1. Jean Pigee (1568-1642), a French explorer and navigator who was among the first Europeans to explore the coastline of what is now Canada.
2. Pierre Pigee (1628-1706), a French architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in Paris, including the Église Saint-Roch.
3. Marie-Antoinette Pigee (1756-1830), a French painter and artist known for her portraiture work during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
4. Joseph Pigee (1789-1854), a French military officer and strategist who served under Napoleon Bonaparte and wrote influential works on military tactics and strategy.
5. Émile Pigee (1835-1911), a French architect who designed several prominent buildings in Paris, including the Opéra Comique and the Gare de Lyon railway station.
Throughout history, the surname Pigee has appeared in various spellings, such as Pigot, Pigeon, and Pijot, reflecting regional variations and linguistic changes over time. While the name originated in France, it has since been carried by individuals across different parts of Europe and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pigee
Among Census respondents with the surname Pigee, the largest self-reported group is Black at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.3%) and White (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Pigee 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 Pigee surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American89.3% · 108
- Two or more races8.3% · 10
- White1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pigee
Pigee appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,005 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #138,304 | 121 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 3,005 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 Pigee 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 | #138,304 | #141,309 | -2.2% |
| Count | 121 | 121 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pigee bearers went from 121 to 121 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 3,005 positions in the national ranking, going from #138,304 to #141,309.
FAQ
Pigee surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pigee?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Pigee. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Pigee?
Pigee ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Pigee. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Pigee.
Has Pigee become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pigee went from 121 recorded bearers to 121. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #138,304 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Pigee?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pigee, the largest self-reported group is Black at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.3%) and White (1.7%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Pigee in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.3% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pigee appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (89.3%), Two or More Races (8.3%), White (1.7%). 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 Pigee (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 Pigee mean?
A surname derived from an Old French word meaning "pigeon". 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 Pigee (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 have the surname Pigee?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.