2000
#123,314
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Tanguy
A French surname derived from the Germanic personal name "Thangi" or "Thangi", meaning "dweller or person from the wood".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 140 Americans carry the last name Tanguy. That puts it at #140,525 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,448,245 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tanguy 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
140
1 in 2,448,245
Census rank
#140,525
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
122
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 122 bearers of the surname Tanguy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 140525th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tanguy, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.1%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tanguy
The surname Tanguy originated in Brittany, a cultural region in the northwest of France. It likely arose in the medieval period, deriving from the Breton personal name Tangi, which itself comes from the old Celtic word "tanau" meaning "fire" or "brightness." The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears to be Tanguy.
In the 12th century, the name is found in the Cartulaire de l'abbaye de Landevenec, a medieval manuscript containing records of the Landevenec Abbey in Finistère, Brittany. An entry from 1162 mentions a certain "Radulfus Tangui." This suggests the name was already well-established in the region by that time.
The Tanguy surname later spread beyond Brittany, with instances recorded in various regions of France. In the 14th century, the Livre des bourgeois de Rouen, a record of the citizens of Rouen, includes a "Guillaume Tanguy" listed in 1352.
Notable individuals with the surname Tanguy include Tanguy du Chastel (c.1475-c.1540), a French knight and military commander who served under King Francis I. He fought in several campaigns, including the Battle of Marignano in 1515.
Yves Tanguy (1900-1955) was a renowned French surrealist painter, known for his distinctive dreamlike landscapes. Born in Paris, his works were influenced by the surrealist movement and the writings of André Breton.
Marcel Tanguy (1892-1972) was a French art dealer and gallerist who played a significant role in promoting surrealism and modern art. His gallery, Galerie Tanguy, hosted exhibitions by artists such as Salvador Dalí and René Magritte.
Tanguy Ndombele (born 1996) is a professional football player from France who currently plays as a midfielder for Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League. He has also represented the French national team.
Philippe Tanguy (1925-2021) was a French architect and urban planner. He was known for his work on the reconstruction of Rouen after World War II and for his contributions to the development of modern urban planning principles.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tanguy
Among Census respondents with the surname Tanguy, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.1%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Tanguy 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 Tanguy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.2% · 110
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.1% · 5
- Two or more races4.1% · 5
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tanguy
Tanguy 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
#116,829
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 149
+20 bearers (+15.5%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 6,485 places
2020
#140,525
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
-27 bearers (-18.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 23,696 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #123,314 | 129 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #116,829 | 149 | 0.05 | +20 bearers (+15.5%) | Up 6,485 places |
| 2020 | #140,525 | 122 | 0.04 | -27 bearers (-18.1%) | Down 23,696 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 Tanguy 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 | #116,829 | #140,525 | -20.3% |
| Count | 149 | 122 | -18.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -18.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tanguy bearers went from 149 to 122 (-18.1% change). The surname moved down 23,696 positions in the national ranking, going from #116,829 to #140,525.
FAQ
Tanguy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tanguy?
Name Census estimates that about 140 living Americans carry the surname Tanguy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,448,245 residents.
How common is Tanguy?
Tanguy ranks #140,525 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 122 people with the surname Tanguy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (140), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Tanguy.
Has Tanguy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tanguy went from 149 recorded bearers to 122. That is a decrease of 27 (-18.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #116,829 to #140,525.
What does the Census say about the background of Tanguy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tanguy, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.1%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Tanguy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.2% (110 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tanguy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.1%), Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Tanguy (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 Tanguy mean?
A French surname derived from the Germanic personal name "Thangi" or "Thangi", meaning "dweller or person from the wood". 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 Tanguy (0.04 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 Tanguy?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.