Tardif last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Tardif

A French surname indicating a latecomer or someone born late.

Tardif, 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 Tardif surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tardif in America

Tardif is the 15272nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tardif surname appeared 1,923 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 Tardif.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tardif 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 15272 14877 2.62%
Count 1,923 1,825 5.23%
Proportion per 100k 0.65 0.68 -4.51%

The history of the last name Tardif

The surname Tardif originated in France and is a French name derived from the Old French word "tardif" meaning "late" or "slow". It was likely given as a descriptive nickname for someone who was habitually late or slow in their actions.

The earliest recorded use of the name Tardif dates back to the 12th century in the region of Normandy, France. The name appears in various medieval records and documents from this time period, often spelled as "Tardif" or "Tardiff".

In the famous Domesday Book, a historical record of landowners in England from 1086, there is no mention of the surname Tardif, suggesting that the name had not yet spread to England at that time.

One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Tardif was Gilles Tardif, a French nobleman who lived in the 13th century. He is mentioned in several historical documents from the reign of King Louis IX of France (1226-1270).

Another notable bearer of the name was Jean Tardif, a French poet and humanist who lived in the 16th century (c. 1510-1565). He is known for his works in Latin and Greek, as well as his translations of ancient texts.

In the 17th century, Jacques Tardif (1618-1668) was a French lawyer and jurist who served as a member of the Parlement of Paris, one of the most important judicial bodies in France at the time.

During the 18th century, Pierre Tardif (1712-1771) was a French architect who designed several notable buildings in Paris, including the Church of Saint-Sulpice.

In more recent history, René Tardif (1891-1951) was a French politician and trade unionist who served as a deputy in the National Assembly of France from 1936 to 1942.

The surname Tardif has also been found in other French-speaking regions, such as Quebec, Canada, where it was likely brought by French settlers and immigrants. It continues to be a relatively common surname in these areas today.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tardif

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

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 Tardif was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 95.27% 1,832
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.78% 15
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.77% 34
Hispanic Origin 1.98% 38

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 95.27% 95.67% -0.42%
Black 0.78% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% 0.33% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 1.77% 1.75% 1.14%
Hispanic 1.98% 1.81% 8.97%

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

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!

"Tardif last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/tardif-surname-popularity/.

"Tardif last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/tardif-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 December, 2024

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

Search for a name

Search for a first or last name to learn more about its origin, meaning, and more.

Simple as that.