Find out how popular the last name Sergent is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Sergent.

Sergent, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Sergent surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sergent in America

Sergent is the 10787th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sergent surname appeared 2,957 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Sergent.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sergent to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Sergent

The surname Sergent is of French origin and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old French word "sergent," which means "servant" or "officer." The name likely originated as an occupational surname for someone who served in a position of authority, such as a bailiff or a court officer.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Sergent can be found in various medieval records and documents from France. One notable example is Guillaume Sergent, a 13th-century nobleman and knight who fought in the Crusades. Another early bearer of the name was Jean Sergent, a merchant from Paris who lived in the 14th century.

During the Middle Ages, the Sergent surname was particularly prevalent in the northern regions of France, such as Normandy and Picardy. It was also found in some areas of southern England, likely due to the Norman conquest of England in 1066.

As the Sergent family spread across Europe, the name underwent various spelling variations, including Sargent, Sargeant, and Serjant. These variations were often influenced by local dialects and scribal errors in record-keeping.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Sergent surname in England appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Sargent." This suggests that the name had already established a presence in England shortly after the Norman Conquest.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the Sergent surname. One such figure was Hugues Sergent (c. 1240-1310), a French architect and sculptor who worked on the construction of the Cathedral of Reims. Another notable bearer of the name was Pierre Sergent (1625-1709), a French Jesuit missionary who traveled to Canada and worked among the indigenous peoples.

In more recent times, the Sergent surname has continued to be prominent, with individuals such as John Singer Sergent (1856-1925), an American artist and portraitist, and Jacques Sergent (1924-2014), a French historian and linguist who specialized in the study of ancient civilizations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sergent

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Sergent.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Sergent was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Sergent has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Sergent was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Sergent, please contact us.

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