2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Trainque
A French surname potentially derived from a place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 115 Americans carry the last name Trainque. That puts it at #155,682 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,980,473 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Trainque 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
115
1 in 2,980,473
Census rank
#155,682
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
100
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 100 bearers of the surname Trainque in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155682nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Trainque, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Trainque
The surname Trainque has its origins in the northern regions of France, dating back to the early medieval period around the 9th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old French word "trein," which referred to a train or a group of people traveling together. The name may have been given to someone who worked as a guide or leader for such groups, perhaps leading caravans or convoys.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in a document from the Abbey of Saint-Bertin in Saint-Omer, Pas-de-Calais, dated 1092. The document mentions a certain Renaud Trainque, who was a local landowner in the region. This suggests that the name had already become established in the area by the late 11th century.
In the 13th century, the name Trainque appeared in the records of the city of Arras, which was a prominent center of textile production and trade at the time. A notable figure from this period was Jacques Trainque, a wealthy merchant who served as a city alderman in 1278.
As the name spread across France, it took on various spellings and variations, such as Traincque, Traynque, and Treynque. In the 15th century, a branch of the family settled in the region of Brittany, where the name was recorded as Treinque.
One of the most famous bearers of the Trainque name was Jean-Baptiste Trainque, a French philosopher and writer born in Reims in 1678. He authored several works on ethics and political theory, including "Essai sur la vertu" (Essay on Virtue), which was widely read in intellectual circles of the time.
Another notable figure was Marguerite Trainque, a renowned painter who lived in Paris during the 17th century. Her works, which often depicted scenes from everyday life, were praised for their attention to detail and vivid colors. She was admitted to the prestigious Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture in 1663, a rare achievement for a woman artist of that era.
In the 18th century, the Trainque family produced several military officers, including Antoine Trainque, who served as a captain in the French army during the Seven Years' War. His son, Pierre Trainque, followed in his footsteps and rose to the rank of colonel in the Napoleonic Wars.
As the centuries passed, the name Trainque continued to be found across various regions of France, with some members of the family migrating to other parts of Europe and even overseas. However, its roots can be traced back to the northern regions of France, where it first emerged as a surname for those who guided and led groups of travelers on their journeys.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Trainque
Among Census respondents with the surname Trainque, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Trainque 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 Trainque surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.0% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 2
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Trainque
Trainque appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#155,682
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 5,293 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #155,682 | 100 | 0.03 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 5,293 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 Trainque 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 | #160,975 | #155,682 | 3.3% |
| Count | 100 | 100 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 11.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Trainque bearers went from 100 to 100 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 5,293 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #155,682.
FAQ
Trainque surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Trainque?
Name Census estimates that about 115 living Americans carry the surname Trainque. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,980,473 residents.
How common is Trainque?
Trainque ranks #155,682 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 100 people with the surname Trainque. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (115), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Trainque.
Has Trainque become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Trainque went from 100 recorded bearers to 100. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #155,682.
What does the Census say about the background of Trainque?
Among Census respondents with the surname Trainque, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Trainque in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.0% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Trainque appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.0%), Hispanic (2.0%), Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Trainque (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 Trainque mean?
A French surname potentially derived from a place name. 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 Trainque (0.03 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 Trainque?
Want to know how many people are called Trainque? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.