2000
#9,789
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,049
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.13
Rare Last name
Reneau
French toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "fox's den" or "foxhole" in Old French.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,639 Americans carry the last name Reneau. That puts it at #9,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 94,189 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Reneau 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
3.6K
1 in 94,189
Census rank
#9,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,173 bearers of the surname Reneau in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Reneau, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.0%. The next largest groups are Black (11.8%) and Hispanic (7.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Reneau
The surname RENEAU has its origins in France, specifically in the region of Brittany. It is believed to have emerged around the 12th or 13th century as a variant of the French name "Renaud," which itself is derived from the Germanic elements "ren" meaning "counsel" and "wald" meaning "ruler."
The earliest known record of the name RENEAU can be found in the Cartulaire de Redon, a collection of charters from the abbey of Redon in Brittany, dated around 1170. In these documents, the name appears written as "Renau" and "Renault," indicating the variations that existed in the spelling of the surname during that time.
One of the earliest recorded individuals bearing the name RENEAU was Jean Reneau, a merchant from the town of Rennes in Brittany, who is mentioned in a contract dated 1327. Another notable figure was Jehan Reneau, a knight who participated in the Hundred Years' War and is mentioned in chronicles from the late 14th century.
In the 15th century, the name RENEAU appears to have spread beyond Brittany, with records showing individuals bearing this surname in other regions of France. One such example is Guillaume Reneau, a poet and translator who lived in Paris during the reign of King Charles VII (1422-1461).
During the 16th and 17th centuries, several members of the RENEAU family achieved prominence in various fields. Pierre Reneau (1515-1582) was a renowned jurist and legal scholar who served as a counselor to the Parliament of Paris. His son, Jacques Reneau (1552-1623), followed in his footsteps and became a respected lawyer and judge.
Another notable figure from this period was Jean Reneau (1589-1669), a Catholic priest and theologian who was involved in the religious controversies of his time. He authored several works on theological subjects and participated in debates with Protestant scholars.
As the RENEAU surname spread across Europe, it also found its way to the New World. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in North America was that of Pierre Reneau, a French settler who arrived in Québec in the late 17th century and established a family line that continues to this day.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Reneau
Among Census respondents with the surname Reneau, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.0%. The next largest groups are Black (11.8%) and Hispanic (7.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Reneau 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 Reneau surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.0% · 2,413
- Black or African American11.8% · 374
- Hispanic or Latino7.1% · 224
- Two or more races4.0% · 126
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Reneau
Reneau 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
#9,865
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,279
+230 bearers (+7.5%)
Per 100,000 1.11
Rank movement Down 76 places
2020
#9,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,173
-106 bearers (-3.2%)
Per 100,000 1.06
Rank movement Up 108 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,789 | 3,049 | 1.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,865 | 3,279 | 1.11 | +230 bearers (+7.5%) | Down 76 places |
| 2020 | #9,757 | 3,173 | 1.06 | -106 bearers (-3.2%) | Up 108 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 Reneau 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 | #9,865 | #9,757 | 1.1% |
| Count | 3,279 | 3,173 | -3.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.11 | 1.06 | -4.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Reneau bearers went from 3,279 to 3,173 (-3.2% change). The surname moved up 108 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,865 to #9,757.
FAQ
Reneau surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Reneau?
Name Census estimates that about 3,639 living Americans carry the surname Reneau. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 94,189 residents.
How common is Reneau?
Reneau ranks #9,757 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,173 people with the surname Reneau. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,639), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Reneau.
Has Reneau become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Reneau went from 3,279 recorded bearers to 3,173. That is a decrease of 106 (-3.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,865 to #9,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Reneau?
Among Census respondents with the surname Reneau, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.0%. The next largest groups are Black (11.8%) and Hispanic (7.1%). 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 Reneau in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.0% (2,413 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Reneau appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.0%), Black (11.8%), Hispanic (7.1%). 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 Reneau (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 Reneau mean?
French toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "fox's den" or "foxhole" in Old French. 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 Reneau (1.06 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 Reneau?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.