2000
#4,543
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,170
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.66
Rare Last name
Plante
French occupational surname referring to a grower or planter of trees, derived from the Old French word "plante."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,786 Americans carry the last name Plante. That puts it at #5,009 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.27 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 44,022 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Plante 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
7.8K
1 in 44,022
Census rank
#5,009
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,790 bearers of the surname Plante in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.27 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5009th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Plante, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Plante
The surname Plante has its origins in France, tracing back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the French word "plante," meaning "plant" or "seedling." This name likely originated as a nickname or occupational name for a gardener, farmer, or someone who worked with plants.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Plante can be found in the medieval records of Normandy, France, dating back to the 13th century. The name appears in various spellings, such as Plante, Plantes, and Plantier, reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Plante name spread throughout France, particularly in regions like Brittany, Poitou, and Anjou. Some notable individuals bearing this surname include Jacques Plante (1929-1986), a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the Montreal Canadiens and is credited with popularizing the modern goalie mask.
In the 18th century, the Plante name was found in the records of the French colony of Acadia (present-day Maritime provinces of Canada). One of the earliest recorded Acadians with this surname was Pierre Plante, born in 1670 in Port-Royal, Acadia (now Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia).
Another significant figure with the Plante surname was François Plante (1701-1765), a French architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in Paris, including the Église Saint-Roch and the Hôtel de la Monnaie.
The Plante name also appears in historical records of other European countries, such as Belgium and Switzerland, likely due to migration and intermarriage with French families. For instance, Jean-Baptiste Plante (1797-1868) was a Swiss-born painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes.
In the United States, the Plante surname can be traced back to the early waves of French immigration, particularly from Canada and France. One notable American with this surname was David Plante (1940-2021), a novelist and memoirist known for works such as "The Family" and "Difficult Women."
While the Plante surname has its roots in France, it has since spread across the globe, carried by generations of families and individuals who have contributed to various fields, from sports and arts to architecture and literature.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Plante
Among Census respondents with the surname Plante, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Plante 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 Plante surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 6,093
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 256
- Two or more races3.6% · 246
- Black or African American1.5% · 99
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 58
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 38
Timeline
Historical Census data for Plante
Plante 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
#4,583
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,744
+574 bearers (+8.0%)
Per 100,000 2.63
Rank movement Down 40 places
2020
#5,009
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,790
-954 bearers (-12.3%)
Per 100,000 2.27
Rank movement Down 426 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,543 | 7,170 | 2.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,583 | 7,744 | 2.63 | +574 bearers (+8.0%) | Down 40 places |
| 2020 | #5,009 | 6,790 | 2.27 | -954 bearers (-12.3%) | Down 426 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 Plante 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 | #4,583 | #5,009 | -9.3% |
| Count | 7,744 | 6,790 | -12.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.63 | 2.27 | -13.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Plante bearers went from 7,744 to 6,790 (-12.3% change). The surname moved down 426 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,583 to #5,009.
FAQ
Plante surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Plante?
Name Census estimates that about 7,786 living Americans carry the surname Plante. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 44,022 residents.
How common is Plante?
Plante ranks #5,009 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.27 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 6,790 people with the surname Plante. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,786), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.27 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.27 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 Plante.
Has Plante become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Plante went from 7,744 recorded bearers to 6,790. That is a decrease of 954 (-12.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,583 to #5,009.
What does the Census say about the background of Plante?
Among Census respondents with the surname Plante, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Plante in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (6,093 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Plante appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Hispanic (3.8%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Plante (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 Plante mean?
French occupational surname referring to a grower or planter of trees, derived from the Old French word "plante." 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 Plante (2.27 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 Plante?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.