2000
#13,128
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,135
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.79
Rare Last name
Simard
A French occupational surname referring to a person who tended or bred dairy cattle.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,319 Americans carry the last name Simard. That puts it at #14,253 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 147,803 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Simard 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
2.3K
1 in 147,803
Census rank
#14,253
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,022 bearers of the surname Simard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14253rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Simard, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Simard
The surname Simard originates from France and is believed to have first emerged in the region of Normandy during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old French words "si" meaning "thus" and "mart" meaning "hamlet" or "small village." This combination suggests that the name may have initially referred to a person who resided in a particular hamlet or village.
Variations of the spelling include Simard, Simart, and Simart. The earliest known record of the name appears in the Domesday Book, a manuscript from the 11th century that served as a comprehensive survey of land ownership and taxation in England conducted under the reign of William the Conqueror.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Simard was Jean Simard, born in 1612 in Normandy, France. He later immigrated to New France (present-day Quebec, Canada) in the 17th century, where he and his descendants established themselves as prominent landowners and farmers.
Another notable figure was Pierre Simard, a French naval officer and explorer who was born in 1685 in Rouen, Normandy. He is recognized for his contributions to the exploration and mapping of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the eastern coast of Canada in the early 18th century.
In the 19th century, Louis Simard (1812-1887) was a prominent French-Canadian politician and businessman from Quebec. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec and played a significant role in the development of the lumber industry in the region.
The name Simard has also been associated with several notable scholars and writers. One such individual was Marie-Louise Simard (1905-1979), a renowned French-Canadian novelist and poet who was born in Quebec. Her works explored themes of rural life, family dynamics, and the struggles of French-Canadian identity.
Another notable figure was Jacques Simard (1928-2012), a Canadian philosopher and academic who made significant contributions to the fields of metaphysics and epistemology. He taught at various universities in Quebec and was widely respected for his scholarly works and teachings.
While the surname Simard originated in France, it has since spread to various parts of the world, particularly in Canada, where it remains a relatively common surname among French-Canadian communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Simard
Among Census respondents with the surname Simard, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Simard 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 Simard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 1,858
- Two or more races3.5% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 63
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 14
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Simard
Simard 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
#13,517
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,244
+109 bearers (+5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Down 389 places
2020
#14,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,022
-222 bearers (-9.9%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Down 736 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,128 | 2,135 | 0.79 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,517 | 2,244 | 0.76 | +109 bearers (+5.1%) | Down 389 places |
| 2020 | #14,253 | 2,022 | 0.68 | -222 bearers (-9.9%) | Down 736 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 Simard 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 | #13,517 | #14,253 | -5.4% |
| Count | 2,244 | 2,022 | -9.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.76 | 0.68 | -11.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Simard bearers went from 2,244 to 2,022 (-9.9% change). The surname moved down 736 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,517 to #14,253.
FAQ
Simard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Simard?
Name Census estimates that about 2,319 living Americans carry the surname Simard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 147,803 residents.
How common is Simard?
Simard ranks #14,253 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 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 2,022 people with the surname Simard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,319), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 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 Simard.
Has Simard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Simard went from 2,244 recorded bearers to 2,022. That is a decrease of 222 (-9.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,517 to #14,253.
What does the Census say about the background of Simard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Simard, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Simard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (1,858 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Simard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Two or More Races (3.5%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Simard (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 Simard mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a person who tended or bred dairy cattle. 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 Simard (0.68 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 Simard?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.