2000
#6,413
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,890
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.81
Rare Last name
Therrien
A French occupational surname referring to someone who worked with or sold clay tiles or roof tiles.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,293 Americans carry the last name Therrien. That puts it at #7,014 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.54 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 64,756 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Therrien 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
5.3K
1 in 64,756
Census rank
#7,014
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,616 bearers of the surname Therrien in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.54 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7014th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Therrien, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Therrien
The surname Therrien originates from France, specifically the region of Normandy, and dates back to the Middle Ages. The name derives from the Old French word "therrien," meaning a person who owns or cultivates land or works the soil.
Therrien is a locational surname, indicating that the earliest bearers of this name came from a place called Therrien or Thérien. The name is thought to have evolved from the Latin word "terra," meaning earth or land, and the suffix "-ien," which denotes a connection to a particular place.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Therrien surname can be found in the historical records of Normandy from the 13th century. The name appears in various spellings, such as Therrien, Thérien, and Thérin, reflecting the fluid nature of surnames during that period.
In the 14th century, a notable figure named Jean Therrien was a landowner and farmer in the village of Évreux, Normandy. His descendants continued to use the Therrien surname, and it gradually spread across France and eventually to other parts of the world through immigration.
Another prominent individual with the Therrien surname was Philippe Therrien (1568-1632), a French clergyman and theologian who served as the Bishop of Angers from 1620 until his death.
During the 17th century, the Therrien family established a presence in the French colony of Quebec, Canada. One of the earliest recorded settlers was Jacques Therrien, who arrived in Quebec City around 1665 and went on to establish a family line in the region.
In the 18th century, Jean-Baptiste Therrien (1723-1801) was a prominent merchant and landowner in the town of Trois-Rivières, Quebec. His descendants played influential roles in the economic and social fabric of the region.
Another notable figure was Louis-Joseph Therrien (1789-1864), a French-Canadian farmer and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from 1841 to 1844.
Over the centuries, the Therrien surname has spread across various parts of the world, particularly in North America and Europe, carried by descendants of the original French bearers of the name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Therrien
Among Census respondents with the surname Therrien, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Therrien 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 Therrien surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.0% · 4,156
- Two or more races4.3% · 198
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 169
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 43
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 28
- Black or African American0.5% · 22
Timeline
Historical Census data for Therrien
Therrien 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
#6,865
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,900
+10 bearers (+0.2%)
Per 100,000 1.66
Rank movement Down 452 places
2020
#7,014
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,616
-284 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 1.54
Rank movement Down 149 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,413 | 4,890 | 1.81 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,865 | 4,900 | 1.66 | +10 bearers (+0.2%) | Down 452 places |
| 2020 | #7,014 | 4,616 | 1.54 | -284 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 149 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 Therrien 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 | #6,865 | #7,014 | -2.2% |
| Count | 4,900 | 4,616 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.66 | 1.54 | -7.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Therrien bearers went from 4,900 to 4,616 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 149 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,865 to #7,014.
FAQ
Therrien surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Therrien?
Name Census estimates that about 5,293 living Americans carry the surname Therrien. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 64,756 residents.
How common is Therrien?
Therrien ranks #7,014 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.54 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,616 people with the surname Therrien. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,293), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.54 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.54 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Therrien.
Has Therrien become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Therrien went from 4,900 recorded bearers to 4,616. That is a decrease of 284 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,865 to #7,014.
What does the Census say about the background of Therrien?
Among Census respondents with the surname Therrien, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Therrien in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.0% (4,156 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Therrien appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.0%), Two or More Races (4.3%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Therrien (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 Therrien mean?
A French occupational surname referring to someone who worked with or sold clay tiles or roof tiles. 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 Therrien (1.54 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 last name Therrien?
See how many people have the surname Therrien on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.