Tallant last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Tallant

Derived from a nickname for a person of tall stature or a habitational name from a place in Normandy.

Tallant, 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 Tallant surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tallant in America

Tallant is the 14532nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tallant surname appeared 2,051 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 Tallant.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tallant 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 14532 14022 3.57%
Count 2,051 1,973 3.88%
Proportion per 100k 0.70 0.73 -4.20%

The history of the last name Tallant

The surname Tallant has its origins in France, tracing back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old French word "taillant," meaning "cutting" or "sharp," which likely referred to an occupation or personal characteristic of an early bearer of the name.

One of the earliest records of the name is found in the cartulary of the abbey of Savigny in Normandy, dated around 1180, where a certain Radulphus Taillant is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use in the region during that period.

The name Tallant is believed to have spread across France and eventually to England during the Norman Conquest of 1066. In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England compiled by order of William the Conqueror, there are several entries that may be early variations of the name, such as Taillant and Tailliand.

One notable figure bearing the Tallant name was Sir John Tallant, a prominent English knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War against France in the 14th century (c. 1330-1395). He was granted lands in Suffolk for his military service.

Another figure of note was Jean Tallant (c. 1500-1570), a French Protestant scholar and theologian who played a significant role in the early years of the Reformation in France.

In the 17th century, the name appears in records of French Huguenot emigrants who fled religious persecution and settled in various parts of Europe and the New World. One such individual was Abraham Tallant (c. 1620-1690), who was among the early Huguenot settlers in South Carolina.

Other notable individuals with the Tallant surname include:

  1. William Tallant (c. 1670-1737), an English merchant and philanthropist who endowed several charitable institutions in London.
  2. John Tallant (1785-1854), a Scottish explorer and author who wrote about his travels in Africa.
  3. Marie Tallant (1875-1962), a French painter known for her Impressionist landscapes.
  4. Edward Tallant (1910-1989), an American author and journalist who chronicled life in the American Southwest.
  5. Catherine Tallant (born 1952), a British actress known for her roles in television and theater productions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tallant

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

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 Tallant was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.25% 1,933
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.39% 8
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.88% 18
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.78% 16
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.66% 34
Hispanic Origin 2.05% 42

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 Tallant has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.25% 94.68% -0.46%
Black 0.39% 0.56% -35.79%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.88% 0.61% 36.24%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.78% 1.42% -58.18%
Two or More Races 1.66% 1.22% 30.56%
Hispanic 2.05% 1.52% 29.69%

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 Tallant was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Tallant last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 5, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/tallant-surname-popularity/.

"Tallant last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/tallant-surname-popularity/. Accessed 5 November, 2024

Tallant last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/tallant-surname-popularity/.

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