2000
#6,538
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,782
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.77
Rare Last name
Proulx
A French occupational surname referring to a brave or valiant person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,679 Americans carry the last name Proulx. That puts it at #6,566 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.66 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 60,355 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Proulx 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
5.7K
1 in 60,355
Census rank
#6,566
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,952 bearers of the surname Proulx in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.66 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6566th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Proulx, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Proulx
The surname PROULX is of French origin and dates back to the early 17th century. It is derived from the Old French word "prouz" or "proulz", meaning brave or valiant. The name likely originated in the northern regions of France, particularly in the areas of Normandy and Brittany.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Ecclesiastical Register of the Diocese of Quebec in 1636, where a man named Mathurin Proulx is mentioned. This suggests that the name had already been established in France before the colonization of New France (present-day Quebec, Canada).
In the 17th and 18th centuries, several families with the surname PROULX were among the early French settlers in the colony of New France. They played a role in the development of the region, contributing to various aspects of colonial life, including agriculture, trade, and exploration.
Notable individuals with the surname PROULX include Antoine Proulx (1773-1840), a farmer and political figure in Lower Canada (now Quebec). He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada in 1809 and served until 1810.
Another prominent figure was Joseph-Adolphe Proulx (1834-1906), a Canadian Roman Catholic priest and educator. He served as the principal of the Collège de Rigaud, a classical college in Quebec, from 1872 to 1906.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the name is that of Joseph Proulx, who was born in 1819 in Vermont. He was a farmer and a member of the Vermont General Assembly in the 1860s.
Pierre Proulx (1854-1923) was a Canadian businessman and politician from Quebec. He served as a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1904 to 1917, representing the riding of Maskinongé.
Jean-Baptiste Proulx (1786-1861) was a French-Canadian farmer and militia officer who fought in the War of 1812 on the side of the British. He was awarded the Military General Service Medal for his service.
While the surname PROULX is predominantly found in Canada and the United States, it has also spread to other parts of the world due to migration and diaspora. However, its roots can be traced back to the brave and valiant individuals who bore this name in the early days of French settlement in North America.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Proulx
Among Census respondents with the surname Proulx, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Proulx 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 Proulx surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 4,596
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 153
- Two or more races2.8% · 140
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 37
- Black or African American0.4% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Proulx
Proulx 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
#6,645
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,096
+314 bearers (+6.6%)
Per 100,000 1.73
Rank movement Down 107 places
2020
#6,566
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,952
-144 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 1.66
Rank movement Up 79 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,538 | 4,782 | 1.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,645 | 5,096 | 1.73 | +314 bearers (+6.6%) | Down 107 places |
| 2020 | #6,566 | 4,952 | 1.66 | -144 bearers (-2.8%) | Up 79 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 Proulx 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 | #6,645 | #6,566 | 1.2% |
| Count | 5,096 | 4,952 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.73 | 1.66 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Proulx bearers went from 5,096 to 4,952 (-2.8% change). The surname moved up 79 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,645 to #6,566.
FAQ
Proulx surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Proulx?
Name Census estimates that about 5,679 living Americans carry the surname Proulx. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 60,355 residents.
How common is Proulx?
Proulx ranks #6,566 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.66 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 4,952 people with the surname Proulx. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,679), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.66 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.66 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 Proulx.
Has Proulx become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Proulx went from 5,096 recorded bearers to 4,952. That is a decrease of 144 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,645 to #6,566.
What does the Census say about the background of Proulx?
Among Census respondents with the surname Proulx, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Proulx in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (4,596 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Proulx appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), Hispanic (3.1%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Proulx (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 Proulx mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a brave or valiant person. 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 Proulx (1.66 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 Americans have the surname Proulx?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.